Hometown pride can be learned

February 25, 2026

The Hometown Pride program that is being applied for by the Greater Hamilton County Partnership has an approach that gives me hope. It’s a given that every community across the country is lacking something. It shows up in several ways. Traditional churches are struggling with attendance. Organizations are disappearing. And government is being asked to do more in individual towns and cities. This means everyone loses. When I pull articles to create the “Turning back the pages of time,” it is full of meetings and officers being elected. The names are all different. And ...

Opa’s and my memories

February 18, 2026

My paternal grandfather, who I knew as Opa, was born in 1899, the year the first automobiles were displayed in Iowa at the Linn County Fair. Opa celebrated his 11th birthday on April 29, 1910, less than a week before the first documented powered, heavier-than-air airplane flight in Iowa occurred. On the day after Opa’s 23rd birthday, WOI Radio in Ames was granted a license to operate Iowa’s first radio station. He told me about dating with a horse and wagon. “The horse knew the way,” he said with a wink. Opa farmed with horses for at least two decades before he began ...

Some mid-winter fishing thoughts

February 9, 2026

A glance out the window of my central Iowa home reminds me that this isn’t open water fishing season. The wind and snow limit visibility so travel isn’t recommended, and it’s too cold to leave the house anyway. It’s times like this that I daydream about fishing in warm weather. Following are some fishing things that have my attention. The more time that I spend on the water, the more I realize that the water has changed. In quite a few places, the water is clearer and the vegetation is deeper. Invasive species like zebra mussels have found homes in lakes where they didn’t ...

Putting students first in higher education policy

February 2, 2026

At Iowa Central Community College, our purpose is simple and student-centered: we want students to finish their degrees or certifications in the shortest time possible, with the least amount of student loan debt, so they can have a better life. This purpose helps us fulfill our mission by meeting Iowans where they are and preparing them for successful careers that strengthen our communities. That mission guided our participation when the Iowa Legislature asked community colleges to study whether offering bachelor’s degrees could help address unmet workforce and student needs. What we ...

The Lenten Season is near

January 30, 2026

It is hard to believe that the Lenten season is only a couple of weeks away. In the Catholic Liturgical Calendar, there are four Liturgical seasons: Advent, Christmas, Ordinary Time, and Lent. Currently, the Church is in Ordinary Time, but we are quickly approaching Lent. Ash Wednesday, which is February 18, is the start of this especially important season. The Lenten season lasts from Ash Wednesday to the start of what is known as the Easter Triduum, which begins on the evening of Holy Thursday. Lent is more than just a season that leads to Easter; it is an invitation to break ...

It’s time to get re-wired

January 23, 2026

I have a confession to make. I don’t trust computers any more. Don’t get me wrong: I’m typing on one right now and I really appreciate many of the functions for writing and storing information. But I think we’ve gone too far. When I first started writing, I used a typewriter. An old fashioned, black, typewriter, probably an Underwood. It was the one my dad used for typing competitions in high school, back in the 1930s. You had to push hard, and change the ribbon. If you made a mistake you started over, or used a special eraser, but there was nothing more comforting than ...