Local honoring for national recognition ...

Main Street Lansing recently presented a plaque to Lansing Iowa Food Trust (LIFT) in recognition of its designation as the Nicest Place in Iowa by Reader’s Digest magazine in a recent nationwide contest. Receiving a brief mention in the November 2019 issue of Reader’s Digest (page 72) along with the other 50 state winners in the contest, LIFT was honored for providing a place for those in need to acquire basic necessities without judgment. The LIFT board members, some of whom accepted the plaque in the photo above, are dedicated people who devote their time and energy into making LIFT the safe, accessible and welcoming place it is. The nomination from earlier in the year that eventually resulted in LIFT being designated the Nicest Place in Iowa finalist read, in part, “A small group of community members volunteered their time to help form LIFT from the ground up. They treat everyone who comes for food assistance with dignity and respect because you never know who needs the next LIFT up.”

Pictured above accepting the plaque are LIFT board members (left to right) Janice Rea, Laurie Van Brocklin, Wendy Gibbs, Kirk Ellefson, Jessica Meyer and Karen Galema. Lansing Housing Products donated the plaque that was awarded by Main Street Lansing. Based on the panel of judges in the Reader’s Digest magazine’s third annual Nicest Places in America contest, Columbiana, OH was selected as this year’s Nicest Place in America. Located on the eastern edge of Ohio, the town of 6,200 people received an initial “no person gets left behind” nomination into the contest highlighting a renovated downtown theater that features performances put on by members of the local and area community with special needs. The full feature story of Columbiana, OH can also be found in the November 2019 issue of Reader’s Digest. Submitted photo.