Four State

By NINA BAKER – Quad City Times, Davenport, Iowa (TNS) A Davenport doula who specializes in end-of-life care has joined with the Midwest Writing Center to host a workshop on poetry as an expression of grief. The Dec. 28 “Narrating Grief Through Poetry” event focuses on using poetry and sound to capture, process and release

By OLIVIA ALLEN – Quad City Times, Davenport, Iowa (TNS) Over the past two weeks, most Quad-Cities schools have celebrated the holidays in some fashion to keep their students engaged before winter break. Several schools host annual concerts or Christmas recitals during this time, while many teachers or clubs sponsor themed parties. Others, however, took

By NINA BAKER – Quad City Times, Davenport, Iowa (TNS) The Swampland Jewels, a fusion band mixing Iowa charm and Gulf Coast soul, will perform on Sunday, Jan. 19, for the first 2025 show in Polyrhythms’ Third Sunday Jazz series. “Let The Swampland Jewels take you on a trip down old Highway 61, and across

By JOSHUA SHIMKUS – Quad City Times, Davenport, Iowa (TNS) Starting on Jan. 1, 2025, the city of Moline plans to hire six new firefighters/paramedics with the intention of staffing a third ambulance in the city. This will be the first major staffing increase for the department in more than 40 years. According to a

By CHAD DRURY – Ottumwa Courier, Iowa (TNS) OTTUMWA — The last meeting was already going to be difficult for Brian Morgan. Then his wife and three kids walked into the Wapello County Courthouse courtroom single file, and took a seat in the back of the room. Morgan chaired his final meeting of the board

By CHAD DRURY – Ottumwa Courier, Iowa (TNS) As the year 2024 comes to a close, here’s a look back on a year’s of news that appeared in the pages of the Ottumwa Courier. These headlines were curated by Courier staff, and come from reporting by the Courier and our news partners. Part 1 covers

By JEFF REINITZ – Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa (TNS) WATERLOO — Authorities are asking the public’s help in locating a woman who fled from a residential facility where she was serving time for firing a gun in 2020. D’Iona Asia Marie Wilson-Bass, 21, failed to report back to the Waterloo Women’s Center for Change on

By JEFF REINITZ – Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa (TNS) CEDAR FALLS — A Denver caregiver has been arrested for allegedly using her Cedar Falls clients’ credit cards for personal expenses. Cedar Falls police arrested Rachael Lynn Nicklaus, 38, on Dec. 20 for three counts of felony dependent adult abuse, two counts each of identity theft

By Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa (TNS) WATERLOO — Waterloo Community Schools has named Charletta Sudduth director of equity, inclusion and belonging effective July 1. She will succeed Gina Weekley, who is relocating out of state with her family. Weekley will hold the position through June. Sudduth currently serves as the district’s pre-K administrator. That role

By MARIA KUIPER – Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa (TNS) TRIPOLI — A natural sanctuary now looks like a graveyard after bird flu has spread through its waterfowl. Sweet Marsh bird flu 02 Dead trumpeter swans litter the ice of Sweet Marsh in Bremer County. Sweet Marsh, a wetland northeast of Tripoli, welcomes Canada geese, trumpeter

By Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa (TNS) Each December, Courier reporters look back at their favorite stories of the past year. We ask them to pick their favorites: not necessarily the biggest stories of the year, just the ones they found most interesting. Here are some of Andy Milone’s favorite Cedar Valley stories of 2024. Some

By Tom Barton – The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa (TNS) Dec. 26—The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. A semi truck collided with a train near Amana Thursday morning, temporarily blocking a busy highway. Authorities said no one was injured, and traffic was detoured around the crash site.