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Editorial

Hands-free proposal should be the law in Iowa

We think Iowa lawmakers have missed a chance to make the state’s roads safer for everyone. How did they do that? By failing to approve a bill that would prohibit drivers from using electronic devices unless they are in a hands-free mode. State Rep. Ann Meyer, R-Fort Dodge, introduced the bill three years ago after hearing horror stories from people who were in crashes or nearly in crashes because another driver was using their phone instead of paying attention to the road. Meyer has now submitted the bill in three consecutive legislative sessions. And in each of those sessions, ...

It’s DSAOC Cake Auction time

One of the tastiest fundraisers this community has traditionally experienced is the annual auction conducted by the Domestic Sexual Assault Outreach Center. This online event enables people to indulge their sweet tooth while generating money that is vitally needed to help victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. And it is underway now through Tuesday. It is traditionally known as the Cake Auction. For years, bakers tried to outdo each other with elaborate cakes that went on the auction block. Today there may be some cakes available, but the diversified event also offers ...

Protect our road workers by slowing down

Chances are that over the years everyone has heard some version of the old wise crack that goes like this: In Iowa, we have two seasons — winter and road construction. Here in Fort Dodge, that road construction season is ramping up. In fact, the westbound side of the Kenyon Road Bridge has been closed since last fall. A fresh crop of road cones has just sprouted on Fifth Avenue South and it surely won’t be the last one drivers will see. Local governments have been awarding contracts for a lot of work. For those who are snaking their vehicle through a maze of orange road cones ...

Help celebrate National Ag Day

As another growing season approaches, Tuesday has been set as National Ag Day by the Agriculture Council of America. The council designates the week it falls within as National Ag Week. One goal of National Ag Day is to recognize the contribution agriculture makes in the lives of all of us. The council sponsors and encourages programs during National Ag Week that help Americans: • Understand how food and fiber products are produced. • Appreciate the role ag plays in providing safe, abundant and affordable products. • Value the essential role of agriculture in maintaining a ...

Area residents must take advantage of air service

Skywest Airlines Inc., doing business as United Express, will continue providing flights between Fort Dodge and Chicago through March 31, 2027. That welcome news is courtesy of a new federal Essential Air Service contract that was recently awarded to Skywest Airlines by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Now that the jet service is secured for the next three years, it is up to the rest of us to make sure it stays at our local airport. To do that, local people need to make an effort to use that airline and the airport for all their flight needs. United Express is flying 50-seat ...

Living liver donor story sets example of compassion

Can you imagine giving a big chunk of one of your vital internal organs to a complete stranger? The mere thought of it probably makes a lot of people queasy. But one local woman did just that in a stunning and heart warming example of compassion for another human being. Kristen Hovey, of Fort Dodge, donated 66 percent of her liver to Isaac Hernandez, a young man in Texas suffering from an autoimmune disorder that attacked his liver. Their story did not end with the April 12, 2022, surgery. Hovey and Hernandez have stayed in touch and even co-authored a children’s book for ...