On May 23, government officials from the Republic of the Marshall Islands traveled 6,000 miles to commemorate their country’s Constitution Day in Dubuque. The Iowa city has gathered to mark the Marshallese holiday since 2005. “Today is more than a national celebration,” Isaac Zackhras, Vice Speaker of the Marshall Islands’ parliament told the crowd in […]
Robert Ray
Posted inCommunity/News
Four programs helping immigrants, refugees and underserved Iowans grow a farm business
Iowa has farmland in abundance, but astonishingly little of that land is used to grow food for humans — especially not food for Iowans. It’s too bad, because the state is full of folks with the skills and desire to nourish their community, and support their family in the process. Many of these would-be farmers […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Her parents’ kung pao chicken had Des Moines obsessed. With Heavenly Asian Cuisine, Nhina Chau brought back the recipe — and explored her Vietnamese roots
Nhina Chau, owner of Heavenly Asian Cuisine, will never put freezer-burned veggies in her egg drop soup. She crinkles her nose at the thought of it. “I personally hate the smell of frozen peas and carrots,” Chau said, squirming in her chair. Egg drop soup is a Chinese restaurant classic. The people of West Des […]
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
Many stores stopped redeeming empties after Republicans gutted Iowa’s ‘bottle bill.’ Three years later, the Sierra Club is calling for a review.
It’s been three years since Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a bill gutting an important recycling law that had been in place for four decades. SF 2378 changed “the bottle bill” that another Republican governor, Robert Ray, signed in 1978, creating a 5 cent deposit on bottles and cans of soda, beer and wine […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Stores resume can and bottle redemption
Stores throughout Iowa have started redeeming cans and bottles again, returning the nickel deposits to customers. The temporary suspension of the state’s “bottle bill” expired on Sunday. In her March 17 public health emergency proclamation, Gov. Kim Reynolds suspended the legal requirement that stores which sell beverages in cans and bottles accept the containers’ return, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Another 344 Iowans test positive for COVID-19, as the state prepares to reopen bars
The Iowa Department of Public Health reported at 10 a.m. on Monday that another 344 Iowans have tested positive for COVID-19, including five residents of Johnson County and eight residents of Linn County. The total number of confirmed cases in the state as of 10 a.m. was 17,557. IDPH also reported another seven deaths from […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa Gov. Robert Ray, 1928-2018
Former Iowa governor Robert Ray died on Sunday. Ray, a Republican, was widely admired across the political spectrum during his five consecutive terms as governor, from 1969 to 1983. The 89-year-old Ray died of natural causes at the Wesley Acres care facility in Des Moines, where he had lived in recent years, The Des Moines […]
