Courier reporter Catherine Crow’s favorite stories of 2024
By CATHERINE CROW – 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.
Some are heart-warming. Some are amusing. Some are wistful. We hope you find all of the articles collected here to be interesting.
Kassidy Peyton earning eagle scout
Kassidy Peyton on the night she received the rank of Eagle Scout.
Hazleton Girl Scout receives rare title of ‘golden eagle’ for honoring veterans
Kassidy Peyton of Hazleton accomplished the rare feat of earning a Gold Award in Girl Scouts and the rank of Eagle Scout in Boy Scouts. The two achievements combined are known as a “golden eagle.”
To earn the prestigious title, Peyton worked with a group to replace the deck of a walking bridge at Hare’s Pond campground in Rowley to earn a Silver Award. From there, she earned a Bronze Award by working with her troop to repaint a dairy barn at the Buchanan County Fairgrounds in Independence.
Her Gold Award project focused on honoring veterans by replacing grave markers that were vandalized, stolen or broken at St. John Cemetery in Independence.
She received the Gold Award in July. “I did almost give up, but I didn’t because I had told others I was going to complete this project, and I couldn’t give up on my original goal,” Peyton said.
She also won the rank of Eagle Scout though Troop 90 of Boy Scouts of America, guiding her troop to create a flag retirement box. She is the third girl in the Winnebago Council of Boy Scouts to become an Eagle Scout.
McCready Family
Jenna and Kyle McCready, of Waterloo, share a special moment with their twins, Magnolia and Stevie, in the MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center NICU during December. Jenna went into pre-term labor at 26 weeks and was airlifted to MercyOne Des Moines by the new MercyOne statewide Maternal Transport Team.
Waterloo family first to use MercyOne’s maternal transport unit
On Oct. 17 Jenna McCready was faced with a situation every first-time parent fears.
At 26 weeks, she went into labor with twins, Magnolia and Stevie. The twins had been diagnosed with sharing a placenta and were at a high risk for complications. But thanks to MercyOne’s new statewide maternal transport team, she was airlifted from Waterloo to Des Moines where Dr. Jeffrey Fagerland helped her safely deliver her twin girls.
“It may just have been a helicopter ride, but it saved the lives of my babies,” said McCready of Waterloo. “Who knew one 45-minute helicopter ride would have a huge impact on the maternity world in Iowa?”
The McCready family was the first in Iowa to benefit from the maternal transport team, which was unveiled Dec.12 at MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center. It is meant to provide emergency maternal care to rural communities in every corner of the state.
Each team has a pilot, high-risk obstetrician nurse, flight nurse or medic or ground EMT/paramedic/HROB nurse. The unit also has a fetal heart monitor to gauge the mothers’ contractions and check the baby’s heart rate. The team goes through extensive training to prepare for emergency situations.
McCready is not the only one who has received care from the team; several families have used the transports already.
janesville
Janesville High School
Janesville High School bans cellphones during school day
Janesville Consolidated School District in October barred cellphone use by students at the high school during the school day.
Under the new restrictions, students put their phones in a cellphone lock bag at the beginning of their first-class period. Phones are returned after school or when the student leaves campus. Parents wishing to communicate with their students during the day can do so via email.
Previously, staff had holders for phones in the classroom, but it didn’t help with use between classes and during lunch or study hall where students could use phones.
Many districts across the country are changing phone policies, partly in response to Jonathan Haidt’s book “The Anxious Generation.”
Tacoz California #2 – 1
Vanessa Islas, daughter of Tacoz California owner Maribel Islas, poses inside the restaurant’s new second location on Viking Road in Cedar Falls.
Local businesses growing in Cedar Falls
The city of Cedar Falls saw growth from small businesses this fall.
Tacoz California expanded its authentic Mexican restaurant business with a new location at 918 Viking Road, Suite 101, between KJ and Kompany salon and Daily Dose shake and energy bar. It is a smaller version of the original located at 200 W. First St., Suite 107.
The new location offers the same feeling and food customers enjoy at the original location plus an additional breakfast add-on only found at Viking Road from 8 to 11 a.m. Sundays.
A new boutique, Grizzly Rose Co., opened in October in downtown at 410 Main St.
Owners Anne Bachman and Lisa Gonzales created the women’s clothing store after having bad shopping experiences. They strived to create something that is enjoyable for everyone.
They offer clothing of all sizes while also providing hand dyed, bleached and hand-pressed graphic T-shirts created by Gonzales. “Our focus is to create items that go with the graphics, but also things that just make you feel comfortable,” said Gonzales.
Grizzly Rose 1
Co-owners Anne Bachman and Lisa Gonzales in the recently opened Grizzly Rose Co. boutique in downtown Cedar Falls.
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