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To the Editor:

This letter is for those of you who do not vote, who don’t really care about “politics” and pay no attention to any of it. Please read on.

What happens in Washington, or in Des Moines, matters to you. It affects your own lives, your health, your rights and your finances.

The more progressive party in Washington has recently voted in some pretty cool stuff. These are some highlights from the Inflation Reduction Act:

Now, corporations making over a billion dollars will have to pay taxes - 15%, not 0%, and when they buy back their own stock, a 1% excise tax. Contrary to the opposing party lies, the more progressive party did not add taxes to everyday Americans.

Senior citizens on Medicare will have a lower cap on out-of-pocket expenses and Medicare will be able to negotiate some drug prices with those billionaire pharmaceutical companies.

The 2022 Iowa high school football season is underway, and with it begins another year of The Standard’s Halfback Harry contest. The first week of the contest included nothing but Iowa high school football games on its schedule, as the NCAA and NFL schedules were yet to get into full swing.

Getting the season started on a victorious note was Jan Kreitzer of Cresco, as she missed just two of this week’s 18 games. West Central’s victory over Kee and Dubuque Wahlert’s win over West Delaware were the only two contests to trip Kreitzer up in this season’s opening round of the contest.

Game of the Week honors went to Mark Goeke for the opening round of the contest, as he was one of just three entries to choose West Central to defeat Kee in that ballgame. Jeremy Hogan of Waukon and Wayne Kreitzer of Cresco were the only other entries this week to predict that Blue Devil win over the Hawks, forcing a winning score tie-breaker to determine a winner.

The start to the 2022 Waukon football season began with a rather large first step, as the gridiron Tribe traveled to the home of Class 4A top-five rated Waverly-Shell Rock Friday, August 26. Having been dealt a 45-6 loss in last year’s season-opener, and with the host Go-Hawks returning much more of their offensive firepower from that game than what the Indians were, the football Tribe ended up on the short end of a 42-14 final result.

With last year’s game finding the Indians in as much as a 28-0 early hole, there is a reason why the same people who have Waverly-Shell Rock ranked so high also have the grid Tribe ranked within the top five of Class 2A’s elite. That reason saw the Indians bounce back from what started as a 14-0 early deficit Friday to remain within just a one-touchdown deficit for some of the first half before allowing 21 unanswered points over the game’s remainder.

The Kee football team battled its West Central host to an actual draw in total yardage in its season opener Friday, August 26. However, one could say that the host Blue Devils still had a bit more “Cushion” and an added advantage of already having played one game this season, a week earlier, prior to dealing the Hawks a 46-32 defeat.

“We must play much cleaner football to beat good teams,” Kee football coach Chad Winters said. “The penalties and turnovers really hampered us throughout the night, along with some missed tackles that led to big plays for them.”

Winifred “Winnie” L. Ferring, 91, of Lansing passed away Tuesday, August 23, 2022 at Riverside Transitional Care Center in La Crosse, WI. Funeral services were held Friday, August 26 at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Lansing with Fr. Joseph Schneider officiating. Burial was at Gethsemane Catholic Cemetery in Lansing.

Thornburg-Grau Funeral Home in Lansing handled the arrangements. Memorials may be directed to Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Lansing or to Riverside Transitional Care in La Crosse (2575 7th Street South, La Crosse, WI 54601).

Winifred Louise Ferring was born November 27, 1930 in Waukon, the daughter of James Merle and Shirley (Nierling) Barthell. Winnie graduated from Waukon High School.

Helen Marie McCormick, age 76, of Cole, OK died Friday, August 12, 2022 in Norman, OK. A funeral mass was held Friday, August 26 at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Chickasha, OK. Arrangements were under the direction of Eisenhour Funeral Home of Blanchard, OK.

The daughter of Arland Dean and Veda (Farris) Martin, Helen was born June 26, 1946 in Oklahoma City, OK. Helen married Earl James McCormick July 3, 1968 in Wichita Falls, TX. She worked many years as a Registered Nurse and was a member of the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Chickasha, OK. In her spare time, Helen enjoyed reading mystery novels, attending her grandkids’ and great-grandkids’ sporting events, shopping for antiques, buying items on sale, and going to auctions.

Veterans Memorial Hospital welcomes Katy Maker, Nurse Midwife and Nurse Practitioner, to its health care team serving clinic patients in both the Waukon and Postville Clinic locations, as well as assisting in births in the hospital’s birthing center.

Maker has over 30 years of experience as a nurse midwife and has assisted in nearly 2,000 deliveries.  She will continue to add to that number, assisting moms with their baby’s birth in the Veterans Memorial Hospital Birthing Center. Maker is also proficient in water births.

“I am happy to be bringing my experience here, to work at Veterans Memorial Hospital and back in rural Iowa,” says Maker.  “I have always preferred the rural practice where families have access to quality care and do not have to travel to have their babies.  We are the only hospital in the region that offers water birth and I enjoy those very much.”

In less than one month, Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) and Veterans Memorial Hospital will team up to provide a day for sixth-eighth grade students to explore the many health care careers that are available to them. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Hospital Wednesday, September 14, which is a teacher in-service day with no school.

All attending will be visiting numerous health care departments around the hospital and hearing from staff in those roles. Many of the departments visited will include Nursing, Emergency Room (ER), Ambulance, Laboratory, X-ray, Nutrition and Diabetes Education, Health Information/Medical Records, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Respiratory Therapy, Home Health Care, etc.

The local professionals in those departments will share their educational requirements and discuss what a typical day in their work life is, all in an effort to introduce more youth to career opportunities in health care.

Ken and Debbie Kimball of Waterville will be celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary. They were married September 5, 1992.

Kale and Kenzie McCormick of Asbury announce the birth of their son, Garrett James McCormick, born July 8, 2022 at Finley Hospital in Dubuque. He weighed 8 lbs. 7 ozs. and measured 21 inches in length at the time of his birth. He joins a sister, Shaylee.

Grandparents are Tom and Beth McCormick of Harpers Ferry, and Hank and Dea Dea Murray of Bettendorf.