(Radio Iowa) – While Thanksgiving is usually a time of gathering for feasts with friends and families, this year’s pandemic has demolished many of those hopes and happy times. Mary Limas  is a therapist with the Senior Life Solutions program at Van Diest Medical Center in Webster City. Limas says we all need to be watchful of warning signs in those around us, especially our older loved ones.  “When you know someone might be depressed, you want to be there for that person and it may mean more than being there to listen,” Limas says. “If they need treatment, it’s important to be supportive. Help them stick to the treatment plan. Make sure they stay in touch with the professionals, the therapists.”

Time is one of the most valuable commodities we can share, she says, and if you can even make a brief call to someone who’s isolated, it could help them a great deal.  “Whether it’s during the holidays or once a week, if you’re able to take the time to visit with them, it’s important,” Limas says. “Take any threats or casual mentions of death or suicide seriously. Know important emergency phone numbers, such as the hotlines, the hospital, 911.”

Due to COVID-19, many of us have lost friends or relatives to the disease and we’re missing out on our usual activities — and special events, like a big Thanksgiving dinner. Limas says loss can be a significant stressor.  “For many, it’s a loss of loved ones but also a loss of tradition and routines,” Limas says. “Many people can feel more isolated and alone and they may feel bombarded by messages about the way of life and how families should be this time of year.”

She says to try and focus on positive memories as well as the here-and-now and zero in on the blessings of today.

(Radio Iowa) – More than 21-hundred students will be graduating from Iowa State University this weekend and each of them will be given what’s being called a Graduation CY-lebration Box. Since the commencement ceremonies and convocations will all be virtual due to the pandemic, university registrar Jennifer Suchan says the boxes are a tradition that started with I-S-U’s spring graduation and will be repeated now in the fall. “Some of the items we are going to have in the box include the souvenir cardinal-and-gold tassel, their diploma cover or diploma tube as well as the commencement program,” Suchan says. “They’re getting a six-month free membership to the alumni association, as well as an Iowa State lapel pin.”

The boxes will also include an “I-State” window sticker, a musical greeting card from I-S-U President Wendy Wintersteen that plays “Pomp and Circumstance,” and other thoughtful treats.  “We want to be able to bring a bit of the ceremony to the students,” she says, “and really give them those mementos that they typically would walk away with that are just such an iconic part of a commencement experience for these students.”

Students are being asked to stop by the registrar’s office prior to graduation weekend to pick up their CY-lebration box — or if the student can’t be in Ames in person, the boxes will be mailed to them. For those who come in person, Suchan says students really appreciate the extra effort on behalf of the institution to make a personal connection. “They’re just absolutely thrilled when they’re able to pick up their honor cords and their box,” Suchan says. “They open the commencement program and quick flip it open and start looking for their name. It’s just a nice opportunity for the team just to be able to congratulate them on this momentous event in their life.”

I-S-U will be honoring the 2,171 graduates in two commencement videos that will be available for viewing at 10 a.m. Saturday on the virtual graduation website: https://virtual.graduation.iastate.edu/fall2020

Iowa’s Coronavirus dashboard today (Thursday), indicates 41 people have died from complications of COVID-19 since yesterday’s record 47 deaths, for a total of 2,312. There is one more death to report in Shelby County, where the total now stands at nine. The number of deaths attributed to a pre-existing condition statewide are at 1,327, while deaths at Long-Term Care facilities amount to 1,038, 15 more than on Wednesday. Three more long-term care facilities report COVID-19 outbreaks, bringing the total to 152. Those care facilities report 4,647 positive cases and 1,796 recovered. Cass County’s three LTC facilities have a total of 208 confirmed positive cases and 123 recovered.

Officials say there have been 3,331 new confirmed, Positive cases of the virus reported since yesterday, for a total since the pandemic began, of 222,278. Cass County has 12 new positive cases, for a total of 797. Mills County crossed the 1,000+ mark for positive cases, at 1,012. Pottawattamie County positive cases continue to grow exponentially, to 6,081 as of today.

Hospitalizations have fallen from 1,305 Wednesday to 1,269 today. There are: 271 patients in intensive care (2 more than Wed.); 193 patients admitted in the last 24 hours, down from 198 previously; and there are 142 people on a ventilator, Compared to 150 previously. In western/southwestern Iowa: there are 60 COVID patients in the hospital (down from 64 Wed.); 17 are in an ICU (two less than before); 10 people were admitted to a hospital, compared to six previously, and seve people are on a ventilator, one less than before.

The state’s data shows that 1,194,529 Iowans have been tested for coronavirus. Test results received yesterday amounted to 8,712, with 6,737 coming back Negative and 1,923 Positive. Iowa’s statewide 14-day positivity rate continues to decline, now at 18.6%. The Individual Positivity rate is also at 18.6%. Cass County’s Positivity rate remain at 20.3%. Taylor County has the highest rate in southwest Iowa, at 24.6%. Audubon County is the lowest, at 10.8%.  A total of 970,158 Iowans have tested negative for COVID-19.

The IDPH says 124,522 Iowans have recovered from the virus. In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases in each county, along with the 24-hour change in case numbers {+#}; the number of persons recovered, and the total number of [deaths] (if any), since the pandemic began,

• Cass, 797 cases {+12}; 497 recovered; 21 deaths
• Adair, 425 {+3}; 201; 8
• Adams, 164 {+3}; 84; 2
• Audubon, 293 {+8}; 166; 1
• Guthrie, 732 {+6); 410; 15
• Harrison County, 1,060 {+36}; 698; 28
• Madison County, 673 {+10}; 372; 4
• Mills County, 1,017 {+18}; 442; 7
• Montgomery, 449 {+13}; 203; 10
• Pottawattamie County, 6,109 {+184]; 3,457; 67
• Shelby County, 748 {+13}; 439; 9
• Union County,  750 {+16}; 283; 6