Stories from Friday, March 27, 2020

The U.S. Senate late Wednesday night approved a $2 trillion spending bill that aims to provide economic relief for workers and businesses and to aid hospitals and states reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic. The chamber voted 96-0 to pass the bill in an unusual display of bipartisanship...

Century Farms Distillery of Spencer and West O Beer of West Okoboji have joined together in hopes of helping local citizens combat the COVID-19 virus. According to public health authorities, washing hands frequently and using hand sanitizer can help families protect themselves from spreading the virus...

Hy-Vee, Inc. announced today that it will be temporarily suspending its return, refund and rain check policy until further notice. Beginning this week, March 24, Hy-Vee stores across its eight-state region will not accept returns or issue rain checks for its products. ...

Two Iowa Renewable Fuels Association members sent the first donated shipment of Iowa ethanol and glycerin to the state of Iowa to be used by Iowa Prison Industries for the production of hand sanitizer during the national shortage. The donation is made by Iowa ethanol producer Absolute Energy and Iowa biodiesel producer Western Iowa Energy. ...

The Cherokee Symphony Young Artists Concert scheduled for April 19, 2020, has been cancelled. The Symphony Board of Directors is following the recommendations of the President and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) as well as the Iowa Governor.  People gathering in confined space is limited and the Symphony orchestra alone exceeds these numbers.  The Board regrets the need to make this decision, but does recognize the importance of considering the health and safety of musicians and audience...

The Walt Disney Co. will release “Frozen 2” on Disney Plus several months early to give families cooped up by the coronavirus a welcome distraction — and give its streaming service a boost. Disney announced Friday that “Frozen 2” will begin streaming on Disney Plus Sunday, three months earlier than expected. In some countries, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands, the movie will start streaming Tuesday...

Trust Pearl Jam to still surprise us in 2020. The Seattle rock gods have made an album we didn’t know we needed. “Gigaton” is a fascinating and ambitious 12-track collection with a cleaner, crisper sound that is studded with interesting textures, topped by Eddie Vedder’s still-indignant voice...

It wasn’t Judith Heumann’s first standing ovation, but it might have been her loudest. Heumann, who had polio as a baby and uses a wheelchair, has for decades been one of the leading figures of the disability rights movement. When the Brooklyn native, after graduating from college, was denied a teaching license by New York City’s board of education because her wheelchair was declared a fire hazard, she sued and won. ...

Western Iowa Congressman Steve King is accusing Congressional Democrats of “sick and twisted” strategy. “In the midst of this worldwide crisis that threatens our lives, the Democrats are attempting to sneak their Marxist agenda under the radar,” King said Wednesday in a message to supporters, as negotiation was nearing completion on a COVID-19 relief bill...

The Storm Lake School District plans to add a net of eight new staff members for the next academic year, according to discussion at the most recent board of education meeting. The additions are needed in the face of growing enrollment, board member Erika Dierking felt. “In my opinion, we haven’t kept up with staffing… we constantly ask our staff to take more and do more, and they do it happily. I’m excited to get these new people hired and relieve some of the pressure on our people.”...

The City of Storm Lake is reminding citizens to take the time to complete their 2020 Census information. Residents should have received an initial mailing. They can file information any of three ways: by mail, by phone, or online at www.my2020census.gov. For those using the phone option, numerous languages are provided by calling the following numbers...

All Iowa Workforce Centers have been converted into call centers only, according to Bob Becker of the Spencer Workforce site. Aa COVID-19 related layoffs pile up, the centers can’t take in the displaced workers. People are being advised to file or report claims online at www.iowaworkforcedevelopment.gov...

The Lakeside City Hall is encouraging residents to stay quarantined, with another message on its electronic sign board rotation calling for frequent hand washing. / Pilot photo by Dana Larsen

March 11, 1941 - March 23, 2020

Iowa confirmed 34 more COVID-19 cases Thursday for total of 179 positive cases so far, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported. Thirty-one Iowans are currently hospitalized; 15 are discharged and recovering, and 81 have never been hospitalized. One Iowan has died...

Four 4th Congressional District Republicans will remain on primary ballots after being judged to have demonstrated substantial compliance in meeting necessary requirements on Tuesday. The State Objection Panel, comprised of Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, Attorney General Tom Miller and State Auditor Rob Sand, convened via teleconference Tuesday afternoon to address a number of filed objections to candidate filings and spent the majority of the meeting on the objection regarding 4th District candidates U.S. ...

Storm Lake Sunrise Pointe course is tentatively scheduled to open April 1, but COVID-19 - or weather - may throw a double-bogey into that plan. When it is opened, it could be walking only - no carts - with people asked to leave flags in the holes. An off-site check in is a possibility if quarantine continues to apply, and food and drink could be limited to outdoor areas, according to King’s Pointe management...

King’s Pointe Resort is remaining open, though the parking lot is mainly barren. “We’re open for business, our guests are enjoying a great stay, and they appreciate the safeguards we have put in place,” said manager Mark Clossey. “We’re holding our own.”...

A lengthy search for a missing Storm Lake native is over. The family announced that the body of Justine Miller, 36, was found last Sunday in Wilderness Park, Lincoln, Neb. A preliminary autopsy indicated that the cause of death was hypothermia. Police said that the body may have been at the location near a trail in the heavily-wooded, 1,400-acre park for weeks, and showed signs of decomposition. ...

When her academic dream died for the second time in recent months, Iran Carlos packed up her food, her bedding, her household items, and walked beneath two bridges in Washington, D.C., to give everything she had to the homeless. “Our dorm in Washington was closing due to the coronavirus and we had all this food,” says Carlos, a Buena Vista University senior who began serving The Ecological Society of America through The Washington Center for Internships & Academic Seminars in January. ...

“We’re learning new things every day,” says Storm Lake Library Director Elizabeth Huff. The facility has had to change its policies almost daily, keeping in step with government COVID-19 policies while finding ways to remain relevant as a source of information and entertainment...

The Kiwanis food distribution for the needy took place Wednesday, moving to a curbside system to address COVID-19 concerns. With high school and college students bolstering the volunteer ranks, the program served 240 families in record time, running out of food supply within an hour. Reflecting high local need, the distribution events are now held monthly. / Pilot photos by Dana Larsen...

“It’s just totally sad, a hard situation. We have people at home, with kids in the house, and not enough to feed them. They want to work but they can’t. The fear is really starting to show in this situation.” - Maggie Reyes