Major Jeffrey O’Brien of Waukee was one of the six service members killed in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, “during an unmanned aircraft system attack,” the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a news release on Wednesday. Like the four soldiers killed in the attack identified by the Pentagon on Tuesday, O’Brien served in the 103rd Sustainment […]
Central Iowa
Posted inFood & Drink
Review: Unroll some injera at Habesha Ethiopian & Eritrean Restaurant, serving multi-sensory banquets in Des Moines
I finish the last bite of lentils I can manage, scooped up with a piece of fresh injera. My friend remarks at my “tumeric-stained lips,” so I get up to head to the washroom. “Do you want to try some Ethiopian coffee?” our server Asmeret asks me. Asmeret B. Ayele, along with Bashatu Gutama and her […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Drake University student Declan Coady among six service members killed in Kuwait on March 1
Sgt. Declan Coady of West Des Moines was killed on Sunday while serving in Operation Epic Fury, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday. The 20-year-old Army Reservist was one of six members of the Des Moines-based 103rd Sustainment Command killed on March 1, in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, “during an unmanned aircraft system attack,” according to the […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Dante Powell hosts one of Iowa’s hottest comedy shows: ‘I’m not bootlicking, I’m not tip-toeing. I am who I am’
Dante Powell is on a roll. The Louisiana-born comic has clocked thousands of miles as both a truck driver and a comedian. Powell has called Des Moines his home for over a decade, headlining shows in the capital while hitting the road in major cities with Gary Gulman, Janelle James, Rory Scovel and other gods […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: From passionate to jazzy to epic, the Des Moines Symphony shined with ‘Love–Romeo & Juliet’
The Des Moines Symphony offered classical music enthusiasts an ideal date night on Valentine’s weekend with Love–Romeo & Juliet, the aptly titled fourth installment of their Masterworks Series. The baton was wielded by guest conductor, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, who led a nuanced program of European masterpieces. Harth-Bedoya’s rapport with the ensemble was remarkable considering this is […]
Posted inCommunity/News
‘Remember what Iowa is really about’: Advocates stress solidarity, condemn anti-immigrant attacks from lawmakers at State Capitol rally
About 100 people were chanting “Immigrants are welcome here,” as a rally by the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice (Iowa MMJ) began in the rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol on Wednesday afternoon. The rally was the culmination of Iowa MMJ’s annual advocacy day at the Capitol. The Des Moines-based nonprofit advocates on behalf of […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Ames City Council votes to protect rights of trans residents — one day after legislators advance bill to ban such ordinances
This week, after Republicans on an Iowa House subcommittee advanced a bill to eliminate the power of local governments to offer broader civil rights protections than the state does, Ames became the latest city in the state to amend its municipal code to protect the rights of transgender and nonbinary residents. HSB 664 was drafted […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Review: Walleye, poutine and decadent s’mores help make Guesthouse Tavern + Oyster in WDM a superb supper club experience
Food, like all cultural exchange, is relative. One person’s adventurous meal out of their comfort zone is another person’s daily staple. An example: even though I’m born-and-raised Iowan, I had never heard of a supper club before dining at West Des Moines’ Guesthouse Tavern + Oyster. “Oh, is it like a book club for foodies?” […]
Posted inCommunity/News
President Trump to speak in Clive on Tuesday
On Wednesday, White House Chief of Staff Susan Wiles told reporters President Donald Trump will travel to Iowa on Tuesday, Jan. 27, to deliver a speech on the economy and energy. According to details released on Thursday night, the speech will take place at the Horizon Events Center in Clive (2100 NW 100th St). Doors […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
“Awe Stuck” by Dianne Alita Rosales Siasoco: Winner of the DMPL + Little Village short story contest
This fall, the Des Moines Public Library and Little Village partnered on a short story competition titled “This Time Next Year.” Writers were invited to submit a story under 2,000 words encompassing predictions about the year ahead. The contest’s judges included LV Art Director Chuy Renteria and fellow authors and editors Sophia Hanson, Carol Hunter and Carol […]
Posted inCommunity/News
The First Lady born in Boone, Iowa
A quaint yellow house in Boone, Iowa — a community of just over 12,000 — appears relatively unassuming from the outside. But on Nov. 14, 1896, one of the most influential women of the 1950s was born inside. Mary Geneva Doud would go on to become Mamie Eisenhower, the wife of the 34th U.S. President […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Pulitzer-winning novelist Edna Ferber’s painful time in Ottumwa shaped her as an artist and ‘a human being’
“Life can’t ever really defeat a writer who is in love with writing, for life itself is a writer’s lover until death — fascinating, cruel, lavish, warm, cold, treacherous, constant; the more varied the moods, the richer the experience. I’ve learned to value every stab of pain and disappointment.” —Edna Ferber Edna Ferber (1885-1968) was […]
