Posted January 02, 2019in Your Neighbors
Local rodeo rider gears up to haul full-time professionally. Earning hourly wages at a 9-to-5 is all well and good, but for Briar Dittmer, he prefers to be paid eight seconds at a time. The Southeast Polk graduate is majoring in physical education while competing on a rodeo scholarship at
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Posted December 05, 2018in Your Neighbors
Drake Neighborhood Community Garden offers a place to grow, learn and share at no charge. Those who know Eddie Robinson well say that he is multilingual — speaking English, Spanish and French — and a world-class pool player, mountain climber, master gardener and a breeder of unique types of hot
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Posted October 31, 2018in Your Neighbors
Licensed to hate and “officially awesome,” this Terrorhead helped orchestrate an official Guinness Book world record. A certificate hanging on Charlie Edrington’s wall says he helped organize “the loudest roar at a sports stadium” in the history of mankind. When one hears this sort of far-fetched claim, usually it’s a bunch of hot air, but
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Posted October 03, 2018in Your Neighbors
Major Finken rediscovers herself through pageant. When Mrs. Iowa Jill Finken competed at the Mrs. America pageant in August in Las Vegas, it is quite likely that she was the only contestant who is a mother, wife, lawyer and major in the National Guard, with a deployment to Afghanistan and air assault training
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Posted September 05, 2018in Your Neighbors
A helpful hand for nearly four decades “There is no more shushing at the library,” informs Tina Brooks. The long-time library clerk then pauses, ponders and decides to improve her statement. “There is a lot less shushing,” she says. “We are respectful of the people who are working, so occasionally we do ask people
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Posted August 01, 2018in Your Neighbors
With a little help from neighborhood friends, Waterbury Gardens is back in bloom. The project near the corner of Ingersoll Avenue and 48th Street was once a paved roadway. Then it became a garden. After that, unfortunately, it turned into an overgrown garden. “Time, dry summers, and harsh winters” took their toll, said a
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Posted July 04, 2018in Your Neighbors
To many younger Iowans, Nashville, Tennessee, might seem like an unreachable city of dreams, similar to New York City or Los Angeles. But these two Midwesterners are proving that, contrary to parts of the country’s beliefs, talent does come from Iowa. Rob Donovan and Faith Haroldson first met on a
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Posted June 06, 2018in Your Neighbors
Friends become family while serving Polish sausages and meat nachos Daisy Duke shorts adorn various customers of both genders as they wait in line for concessions at the Greater Des Moines Softball Park. The sun beams through an American flag whipping in the warm summer wind. The hand of an
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Posted May 02, 2018in Your Neighbors
Will Keeps advocates for helping kids “out of the fire” of bullying Local rap artist Will Keeps has done it again, only this time, local firefighters are the heroes featured in his latest video. The Des Moines Science Center hosted the release of “Brave,” a video collaboration that Keeps began
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Posted April 04, 2018in Your Neighbors
Successful first season for former neighborhood buddies after forming a curling team By day, Mike Farrell is a commercial banker and a family man. But each Friday night during the winter season, he heads to the Metro Ice Sports Facility and throws stones with some former neighbors. That’s right, Farrell
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