A 24-hour abortion waiting period will be enforced in Iowa starting today, according to the state attorney general.
The law requires people seeking an abortion to get two separate appointments at least a day apart. The first to certify the patient got an ultrasound and was given the option to see the image, and the second to get an abortion. Providers started following that three weeks ago when an Iowa Supreme Court ruling allowed the 2020 law to take effect.
Future court dates haven’t been scheduled yet.
Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts ordered flags to fly at half-staff until sunset on July 10th to honor former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Ricketts says "Abe was a great statesman, whose leadership and effective diplomacy made an impact far beyond Japan’s borders. During his tenure, Prime Minister Abe helped grow meaningful trade and investment partnerships between Nebraska and Japan. I’m grateful I had the opportunity to personally thank him during a trade mission in Tokyo a few years back. Nebraska’s prayers are with Japan as they mourn his death.”
Iowa’s Republican Party grew in ranks by almost 25,000 voters between June and July, new voting registration data shows.
Check out The Iowa Capital Dispatch for the full story: https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2022/07/07/iowa-republicans-maintain-voter-registration-lead-following-primary/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=269aa9ed-7265-4905-aab6-411fa939a3a8
A poll commissioned by Democratic candidate Mike Franken’s campaign shows him within 5 percentage points of longtime incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley in Iowa’s 2022 U.S. Senate campaign.
The Sioux City Journal reports Grassley was the pick of 49 percent of the poll respondents, to 44 percent for Franken. Seven percent said they remain undecided.
South Dakota Democrats are convening in Fort Pierre as they look to reverse a slide in representation in the Statehouse that is at its lowest point in 60 years. But there have been some victories for progressives at the ballot through citizen-initiated measures. Party activists are discussing ballot measure strategy on Friday and Saturday, including whether to get behind a campaign to reverse parts of state law that immediately banned abortions last month. Democrats believe the race for secretary of state is winnable and want to boost their candidates for governor and U.S. Senate.
The emerald ash borer has now been detected in 92 of Iowa’s 99 counties. It was first found in eastern Iowa back in 2010.
A foreign beetle whose larvae kill ash trees was recently discovered in Kossuth County, one of the few counties in Iowa not previously infested, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.
The emerald ash borer was first detected in eastern Iowa in 2010. Since then it has spread to a total of 92 counties.
The detection in Kossuth is the eighth in a new Iowa county this year. The remaining counties without a detection — mostly in northwest Iowa — include: Emmet, Mitchell, Monona, Osceola, Palo Alto, Plymouth and Woodbury.
Check out the full story from the Iowa Capital Dispatch: https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/briefs/emerald-ash-borer-found-in-92nd-iowa-county/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=269aa9ed-7265-4905-aab6-411fa939a3a8
Iowa health officials are investigating a potential case of a dangerous freshwater amoeba. See the news release below from the state of Iowa.
News release from the State of Iowa:
(Des Moines, IA) Effective immediately, the beach at Lake of Three Fires in Taylor County will be closed temporarily for swimming. The closure is a precautionary response to a confirmed infection of Naegleria fowleri in a Missouri resident with recent potential exposure while swimming at the beach at Lake of Three Fires State Park.
Testing to confirm the presence of Naegleria fowleri in Lake of Three Fires is being conducted in conjunction with the CDC and could take several days to complete. The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services is working closely with the Department of Natural Resources to share information about this rare infection and will provide additional updates as test results become available.
Naegleria fowleri is a microscopic single-celled free-living ameba that can cause a rare life-threatening infection of the brain called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). The ameba is commonly found in warm freshwater such as lakes, rivers, and ponds; however, PAM is extremely rare. Since 1962, only 154 known cases have been identified in the United States. No additional suspected cases of PAM are currently being investigated in Missouri or Iowa.
While Naegleria fowleri can be present in any body of warm freshwater across the United States, infections as a result remain rare. Infection by Naegleria fowleri can occur if water containing the ameba enters the body through the nose. The Naegleria fowleri ameba then travels up the nose to the brain where it destroys the brain tissue. This infection cannot be spread from one person to another, and it cannot be contracted by swallowing contaminated water.
People can take actions to reduce the risk of infection by limiting the amount of water going up the nose. These actions could include:
- Hold your nose shut, use nose clips, or keep your head above water when taking part in water-related activities in bodies of warm freshwater.
- Avoid water-related activities in warm freshwater during periods of high-water temperatures.
- Avoid digging in, or stirring up, the sediment while taking part in water-related activities in shallow, warm freshwater areas.
(These recommendations are best practices but not based on scientific testing since the low numbers of infections make it difficult to show effectiveness.)
While this infection is extremely rare in the United States, people who experience the following symptoms after swimming in any warm body of water should contact their health care provider immediately:
- Severe headache.
- Fever.
- Nausea
- Vomiting.
- Stiff neck.
- Seizures.
- Altered mental status.
- Hallucinations.
For more information about Naegleria fowleri, visit the CDC’s webpage.
News release from Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds:
Gov. Reynolds orders flags at half-staff to honor fallen WWII soldier returning to Iowa
DES MOINES– Gov. Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to fly at half-staff on Saturday, July 9, 2022, to honor a fallen U.S. soldier who was killed in World War II. Flags are already ordered at half-staff through sunset Saturday, July 9 in honor and remembrance for the victims of the tragic shooting in Highland Park, IL.
U. S. Army Pfc. Merl Holm of Lake City, Iowa, was reported killed in action Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1942. Holm had been deployed in present day Papua New Guinea to defend the Allied center of communications in the area.
Unidentified remains from Papua New Guinea were interred as Unknowns in what is now Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. Holm was accounted for in April of this year. He was 22-years old when he died and will be buried with full military honors. Holm had been awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, and the Silver Star.
Saturday, July 9, 2022
Funeral Service
11:00 a.m.
Woodlawn Christian Church
Lake City, Iowa
Interment
Lake City Cemetery
Flags will be at half-staff on the State Capitol Building and on flag displays in the Capitol Complex. Flags will also be half-staff on all public buildings, grounds, and facilities throughout the state.
Individuals, businesses, schools, municipalities, counties, and other government subdivisions are encouraged to fly the flag at half-staff for the same length of time as a sign of respect.
News releases from the City of Sioux City:
ARTWALK in Downtown Sioux City
Art community to host events Thursday, July 14
SIOUX CITY – The Sioux City Art Center announces the second installment of Sioux City ARTWALK on Thursday, July 14, with another date to follow in the fall. ARTWALK is a collaboration between the Sioux City Art Center and downtown art galleries, including Gallery 103, 3 Rivers Art Gallery, and Art SUX Gallery. Beginning at 5:30pm at the Sioux City Art Center, the walk will include viewing exhibitions on display at the Art Center with drinks to start the evening. The group will then move to the Ho-Chunk Centre to explore the artwork at Gallery 103 and 3 Rivers Art Gallery while enjoying appetizers. The evening will conclude as the group visits Art SUX Gallery for dessert and visits to artist studios and gallery spaces.
The Sioux City Art Center looks forward to welcoming members of the Northwest Iowa Chapter of the American Institute of Architects to the ARTWALK on July 14. Currently on display, Towers of Tomorrow with LEGO® Bricks inspires the architect in all of us; local and regional architects, engineers, and designers will view the exhibition alongside guests and build their own LEGO® masterpieces too. Toi Sullivan, of FEH Design and a member of the Art Center Association Board, will say a few words about AIA and the work they do.
“The Art Center is pleased to join forces with other art spaces with the hope that we can come together to celebrate and support the vibrant art community developing in our downtown area. As this project continues, we imagine other organizations joining us to make each subsequent event better and better,” said Todd Behrens, Art Center Director.
The next ARTWALK is scheduled for Thursday, October 13. More information is available on the Art Center Facebook page and Art Center website, listed below.
Sioux City Art Center Unveils New Mural in Gilchrist Learning Center
SIOUX CITY – The Sioux City Art Center is proud to announce that a new mural for its Gilchrist Learning Center’s walls has been completed and installed. The mural, consisting of two sections each measuring 7’6” x 35’, will be visible to both pedestrians and drivers on Pierce Street between 3rd and 2nd Streets. The plan is for the mural to remain on view for two years.
The Art Center began this project by contacting Amber Hansen, assistant professor of art at the University of South Dakota, who specializes in community-based public art projects. Ms. Hansen partnered with Reyna Hernandez, Yazmin Moktan, and Sonia Perea-Morales, who were either graduate students or staff members at USD. Together, the four of them created a plan to work with Sioux City high school students to conceive and paint one or two murals for the two 40-foot walls of the Gilchrist Learning Center that face Pierce Street. In late 2021, these four lead artists visited with art students in Sioux City high schools to recruit students for the project.
Conceptual work began in early 2022, with the students thinking about issues of special importance to them and their peers. The processes used to help develop ideas ranged from visiting the Sioux City Public Museum to writing poetry, drawing, and sharing experiences of living in Sioux City. Once these initial preparations were completed, the lead artists and student leaders worked toward developing overarching themes. The themes that surfaced were often centered around mental health and identity formation. Conversations during this part of the process included perceptions of self and critiques of socio-cultural influences such as social media, beauty & wellness standards, and structural inequalities.
Painting on the enormous canvases began in May in Gilchrist Learning Center studio spaces. The murals began with creating two different environments, one dystopian and the other utopian, in which the artists explore the channels through which we internalize the impacts of external pressures: through the head and the heart. The left panel features a setting that is primarily underwater and features a central image of a submerged head of a statue; this panel represents fear, anxiety, and insecurity. Meanwhile, the setting of the right panel is above ground and into the sky, featuring a central image of a heart; this panel represents the world we want to see and our truest aspirations.
The mural was presented by the students to their families and friends at a private reception on Saturday, July 2. Plans are for it to remain on view for two years.
Funding for this project came from the Art Center Association General Endowment donated by the Joseph G. Stroup Estate, the Gilchrist Foundation, and the Iowa Arts Council.
Sioux City Art Center Announces New LEGO® Programs
SIOUX CITY – The Sioux City Art Center is pleased to announce two additional, free programs related to its Blockbuster exhibition, Towers of Tomorrow with LEGO® Bricks.
On Saturday, July 16 at 10:30am, the Art Center will host the final of three art workshops for children in the Gilchrist Learning Center. In this workshop, children will learn how to use LEGO® bricks to create prints. Advanced registration is required, and space is limited. The class is designed for children ages 7-12. Children under the age of 7 may participate with the assistance of a parent or guardian. To register your children for the workshop, call the Art Center at (712) 279-6272 or email siouxcityartcenter@sioux-city.org.
Also on Saturday, July 16, beginning at 2:00pm, Dr. Beena Ajmera, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Iowa State University, will present, “You Dream It. We Build It!” Dr. Ajmera will talk about how engineers turn architectural dreams into reality, using the skyscrapers represented in the Towers of Tomorrow exhibition as examples. This engaging and interactive presentation is open to students of all ages and is sponsored in part by the H. H. Everist, Jr. Program Endowment Fund.
The Towers of Tomorrow with LEGO® Bricks is sponsored by the Gilchrist Foundation and the Blockbuster Partners of the Sioux City Art Center. It is a traveling exhibition from Sydney Living Museums and toured internationally by Flying Fish.
Sioux City Art Center is a partnership between the City of Sioux City and the Art Center Association of Sioux City.
Visiting the Sioux City Art Center
Sioux City Art Center is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Additional information is available at www.siouxcityartcenter.org.
