Mobile, Ala. – Alina Markutsya of Ames, Iowa will travel to Mobile, Ala., on Wednesday, June 14, to participate in the 66th Distinguished Young Women National Finals on June 22, 23, and 24 at the Mobile Civic Center Theater. Markutsya is one of 50 representatives competing for $155,000 in cash scholarships and the opportunity to represent the program as the Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2023.

Following her selection as the Distinguished Young Woman of Iowa, Markutsya began preparations for the National Finals competition, which will include five categories of evaluation: scholastics, interview, fitness, talent, and self-expression. During her two weeks in Mobile, Markutsya will participate in team building activities, complete community service projects, interact with the Gulf Coast community through various events, and engage in many hours of rehearsal in preparation for the three-night scholarship competition.

“We are excited to welcome the 50 outstanding state representatives to Mobile for the 66th annual National Finals of Distinguished Young Women,” said Carole Hegwood, Executive Director of Distinguished Young Women. “These young women are accomplished, talented, intelligent, and have exciting futures ahead of them.”

If selected as the program’s overall winner, Markutsya will spend the next year representing Distinguished Young Women across the country through various appearances and promoting the program’s national outreach initiative of Be Your Best Self. The outreach program is designed to combat major issues facing children today including childhood obesity and high school drop out rates, as well as encourage young people to take an active interest in their communities through service. The outreach program consists of five elements – Be Healthy, Be Involved, Be Studious, Be Ambitious, and Be Responsible.

Alina Markutsya

Markutsya is a 2023 graduate of Ames High School and the daughter of Svitlana Zbarska and Sergiy Markutsya About Distinguished Young Women Founded in 1958, Distinguished Young Women is a free program that encourages participants to reach their full individual potential. Their mission is to empower young women by providing over $1 billion in scholarship opportunities, connecting with a nationwide network of women, developing their self-confidence, and participating in our Life Skills Workshops that prepare them for success after high school.

National sponsors include Barbara Barrington Jones Family Foundation, Mobile County, City of Mobile, Alabama Power Foundation, Master Boat Builders, Gant Travel Management, Regions Financial Corporation, John Cauley Jeweler,  Jostens, and Alabama Media Group.

For more information about Distinguished Young Women, visit www.DistinguishedYW.org.

(Des Moines, Iowa) — The Iowa GOP will host its annual Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines beginning at 5PM CT on Friday, July 28th. Chairman Jeff Kaufmann will host the event which will feature GOP 2024 presidential candidates having the opportunity to mingle with and address attendees.

Presidential candidates who have confirmed their attendance so far include:

President Donald J. Trump
Governor Ron DeSantis
Vice President Mike Pence
Ambassador Nikki Haley
Senator Tim Scott
Vivek Ramaswamy
Governor Asa Hutchinson
Larry Elder
Perry Johnson

More details are expected to follow.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman, Ashley Hinson, has introduced a flood mitigation bill that uses the existing U-S-D-A Regional Conservation Partnership Program. “Despite flooding being a major challenge for American agriculture, flooding has never really been elevated as a natural resource concern within the R-C-P-P programs,” Hinson says.

Hinson is a Republican from Marion and was a T-V reporter in Cedar Rapids during the flooding there 15 years ago. She says the legislation will expand prevention measures and ensure communities can secure the resources to protect themselves from flooding.

“The infrastructure for these programs already exists if we can use it for some of these other critical flood mitigation initiatives to protect homes and crops and across cost effective way I think that’s that is what the intent is,” Hinson says.

Democrat Illinois Congressman Eric Sorensen is co-sponsoring the “Flood Resiliency and Land Stewardship Act” with Hinson. Sorensen is a former T-V meteorologist.

(Wiota, Iowa) – The Wiota Steakhouse and Lounge façade revitalization construction is expected to be completed this month (June 2023) in time for Wiota’s Sesquicentennial Celebration. The city of Wiota received a grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) in June 2022 under the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Covid Façade program with assistance from Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO). This grant was to revitalize the Wiota Steakhouse and Lounge and construction is nearing completion this month.

The CDBG award was for $300,000 in construction costs and administration and the owner contributed $95,433 of their own funding for architect and construction costs. These funds were able to repair the facades on the North, West, and South sides of the existing structure.

Brenda Williams, owner of Wiota Steakhouse and Lounge, said “I am excited to see this project getting so close to completion. We are celebrating Wiota’s Sesquicentennial this June and our city park is getting new playground equipment so the town will be looking its best just in time for the celebration.”

The playground also benefited from grant writing assistance from SWIPCO. SWIPCO assisted the City of Wiota with securing the Rural Revitalization Grant for $20,000 to help purchase the new playground equipment in Wiota.

The focus of CDBG Covid Façade programs is to eliminate “slum and blight” in communities by completing important building façade repairs and storefront improvements while respecting historic character. To participate, a property owner must contribute a minimum of 10% of the construction cost, commit to the program throughout the grant period, sign related documents, make timely payments, and follow all related grant requirements.

“A facelift to the exterior of the building was previously planned by the owners for summer 2020 but the financial repercussions from Covid-19 delayed this plan. The delay of this project caused further problems for the exterior of the building,” stated Tammy DeBord, Grants Specialist III with SWIPCO. “This grant allowed the building to be restored so that it can remain a source of pride for the residents and this business that draws people to Wiota.”

SWIPCO routinely provides grant writing and administration services to its member communities in Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie, and Shelby Counties and has brought over $129 million in grants to the region in the last year alone.

DES MOINES – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has announced the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has granted her request to provide assistance in the form of low-interest disaster loans for residents and businesses impacted by the partial building collapse of The Hotel Davenport Apartments.

Homeowners, renters, businesses, and most nonprofit organizations in Scott County whose property was damaged or destroyed by the incident will be able to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA. Residents, businesses, and nonprofit organizations in the surrounding counties of Cedar, Clinton, and Muscatine, whose property was damaged or destroyed as a result of this incident, also may be eligible for SBA assistance. In addition, impacted small businesses, agricultural cooperatives, and nonprofit organizations in the above counties will be eligible to apply for Economic Injury Disaster loans.

Applicants may apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information ,and download applications at https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/. Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services. Completed applications should be mailed to U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Revenue is reminding owners of non-residential electric vehicle chargers that new tax changes take effect July 1, 2023.

Owners of non-residential electric vehicle charging stations will be responsible for reporting and paying to the Iowa Department of Revenue two and six-tenths cents for each kilowatt hour ($0.026 per kWh) of electric fuel dispensed into an electric vehicle battery or energy storage device. Any business or organization, including local governments and nonprofits, that has a charging station for its employees or customers will need a license. Licensing and taxation does not apply to electric fuel dispensed at residences.

Visit the Department’s Electric Fuel Excise Tax guidance for more information about how to obtain a license and file and pay the tax. 

To receive notifications of resources and guidance issued by the Department, subscribe to updates by selecting the tax topics of interest.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Supreme Court says a law allowing for additional damages for whistleblowers cannot retroactively apply to a fired D-C-I agent.Larry Hedlund reported in 2013 an S-U-V he said was going 90 miles an hour on Highway 20. The S-U-V turned out to be carrying former Governor Terry Branstad and then Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds. Hedlund was fired several days later.

His lawsuit against the state has continued, and he wanted to seek additional damages under the whistleblower law enacted six years after the incident. The Iowa Supreme Court says the law contains no statement that it should be used retrospectively and reversed the district court ruling that sided with Hedlund.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Chamber Ambassadors were hosted by Atlantic Elks members in celebration of 125 years of their organization on Thursday, June 8th, 2023, at the Atlantic Elks Lodge #445. According to a press release, the Ambassadors learned more about what an Elk is and what they do for the community.

Gail Butler shared about the history of the group’s charity work with donations towards different areas such as local food pantries, fire prevention and drug awareness, scholarships, and helping veterans. One way that the Elks help veterans is by collecting deer hides to be tanned and eventually turned into useful items at no cost to the veteran. Hide drop-off sites are located in Atlantic, Wiota, and Griswold. The Elks have also been honoring Atlantic graduating seniors by giving out scholarships for several years to offset the expenses of tuition and the total is over $60,000 and growing. They also hold many different fundraisers throughout the year such as weekly bingo, a craft fair, and a Mother’s Day brunch. The Lodge space is also available to be rented for different events for $150.

The Atlantic Elks are just one of many groups which are a national organization known as Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Members enjoy getting together on Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays to focus on ways to give back to the community and get connected with each other. The Atlantic Elks invites the public to their 125th Anniversary celebration on June 24th at the Elks Lodge, located at 411 Walnut Street. It will start at 4:30 p.m. with a social hour and open house and the barbecue meal will follow at 6:00 p.m. There will be a freewill donation, which will go towards their different philanthropies.

Ambassadors Left to Right: Kelsey Beschorner, Chris Cullen, Anne Quist, Brian Ruge, Mark Schwartz, Dr. Keith Leonard, Kathie Hockenberry, Jim Nordskog, Dolly Bergmann, Rick Mericle, Lana Westphalen, Vicki Brown, Gail Butler, Delbert Thurman, Renae Steffens, Amanda Hansen, Tori Gibson, Gary Schwartz, Megan Sramek, Jeremy Butler, Krysta Hanson, BJ Hart, Sue Liston, Beth Spieker, Elaine Otte, John Bricker, Paige Jensen, Graydon Schmidt (Photo provided by the Chamber) [Click to enlarge the image]