NEW AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE OPTIONS

Fall is off to a busy start.

As vice-chair of the Senate’s Government Oversight Committee, I’ve been listening and learning about conditions at the Iowa Juvenile Home in Toledo. We now await reports that will help us determine what changes may be needed there. We must do better by these kids.

The time to explore and sign up for new affordable health care options is now in full swing. Making sure every Iowa adult has access to affordable health care was a top priority during the 2013 session.

Main Street Minute 

By Karla Organist 
MSWU board member 

As spokesperson for Main Street West Union this week, We appreciate very much all of you who donated to or volunteered at the metal fundraising effort for our organization and the Fayette County Fair this past weekend.  We were pleased to partner with the Fair Board on this project and extend our appreciation to them as well.

We are looking forward to the upcoming Block Party on Thursday, Sept. 19. Organized by our local merchants, expect a great day in West Union with specials in many stores, tastings, treats, and great music on the Plaza featuring the band Wichita (5-8 p.m.). Main Street West Union will be cooking up some awesome homemade potato chips, so look for us downtown that evening!

To the editor,

I would like to share information on funding for the downtown restoration project.

There was a $100,000 grant from the DOE given to Main Street to help participating downtown businesses pay for costs associated with installing geothermal in their buildings.

There is a $500,000 grant to assist three building owners in creating 12 upper-story apartments. Each owner will receive a minimum of $42,000 per apartment to cover building costs.

There is a $150,000+ façade grant to assist building owners in refurbishing their building fronts.

Seven of the upper-story apartments must be rented to low-/middle-income families. Under current guidelines, the property owners will receive up to $458 per month rent assistance from the government for one-bedroom apartments. If there are two bedrooms, they receive more money.

To the editor:

The Syrians are trying to get the U.S. engaged in a civil war between Middle East terrorists and the current regime of a ruthless dictator who has killed over 200,000 of his own people to retain power and control.

But no one agrees on the appropriate military response or the risk of military escalation. That’s because they are playing by Syrian Middle East Stone-Age rules of “my way or war.”

The U.S. must be smarter than the terrorists and change the rules to our advantage. There is no good military response to Syria. It is costly and dangerous to take their bait with a military response that sucks us in.

K. T. McFarland had the only reasonable response I have heard. Her advice is to fight back with an economic strike that threatens their only asset and future influence in the world.

School’s in session; drive and guide carefully

By Pastor Ginny Olson
St. Peter Lutheran Church, Eldorado

Jesus loves the little children,

All the children of the world.

Red and yellow, black and white,

They are precious in His sight.

Jesus loves the little children of the world.

The new school year has begun with bright faces, new supplies, lots of hope and a little bit of anxiety about new beginnings. We are so privileged to have an education system that includes all children. They are taught, tested, encouraged and guided as they learn, each year building on the last one.

Proud to be NFV

Fifth-grade assignment

A fifth-grade teacher in a Christian school asked her students to look at TV commercials to see if they could use them in ways to communicate ideas about God. 

Read on…

God is like…BAYER ASPIRIN; He works miracles.

God is like…a FORD; He’s got a better idea.

God is like…COKE; He’s the real thing.

God is like…HALLMARK CARDS; He cares enough to send His very best.

God is like…TIDE; He gets out stains others leave behind.

God is like…G.E.; He brings good things to life.

God is like…WALMART; He has everything.

God is like…ALKA-SELTZER; try Him, you’ll like Him!

God is like…SCOTCH TAPE; you can’t see Him, but you know He’s there.

God is like…DELTA; He’s ready when you are.

God is like…ALLSTATE; you’re in good hands with Him.

God is like…VO-5 HAIR SPRAY; He holds through all kinds of weather.

CUTLINE: The man in the foreground is about to burn incense as an offering in a temple in the Cholon District of Saigon that dates back to the 18th century. After a person’s death, relatives go to the temple or pagoda for 30 days to burn incense in honor of the deceased. The wire cones above the altar symbolizes that the incense is trapped in the heavens. In the background you can see some of the reddish-colored shrines; Buddhist temples usually have three shrines –or one is of Buddha, the other two frequently relate to either noted religious figures or to the temple’s founder. (Jerry Wadian photo)

Vietnam:  Spiritual nation & geopolitical realities

By Jerry Wadian
Contributing Writer

To the editor:

To whom it may concern (everyone):

My name is Whitney Hall, and I am a sexual assault advocate. I work with Riverview Center, which, as of July 1, now proudly serves 14 counties in Iowa, including Allamakee, Benton, Black Hawk, Bremer, Buchanan, Chickasaw, Clayton, Delaware, Dubuque, Fayette, Howard, Linn, Jones, and Winneshiek counties, and Carroll and Jo Davies counties in Illinois.

Riverview Center provides free and confidential services such as medical and legal advocacy and a 24-hour crisis line, as well as counseling services for survivors of sexual assault and their families.

CUTLINE: One of the many kinds of fishing boats the ply the waters of Halong Bay heads out for a night's work.

The ghostly dragon’s teeth of Halong Bay

By Jerry Wadian
Contributing Writer
jwadian@thefayettecountyunion.com

Halong Bay is an almost surreal experience.

The UNESCO site can be hard to get to since it is located over three hours north of Hanoi, and the only way to get there is over some rough, narrow roads. You go through not only rural Vietnam, but also the country’s coal-producing province.

However, the seven-hour round trip is worth it. Halong Bay covers 580 miles of some of the strangest landscapes you will ever see.