The daily barrage of bad news, discouraging poll numbers, and stories of senseless violence can be mind-numbing. So much of what passes for news today is broadcast from a national platform. As a rural resident, I couldn't vote in city elections, and our local school board race wasn't a hotbed of controversy. But before we're all propelled toward the next, bright, shiny object on the national horizon, l'd like to linger on local races, the place where the rubber hits the road.
Last summer, I wrote about Elijah Stines' campaign for mayor of Boone (If This Is Woke, Bring It On! --July 15). The six-year veteran of the Boone City Council isn't a Boone County native, and he works in Ames. But 14 years ago, he and his wife chose to settle in this small town (population 12,469) and to get involved.
At 39 years old, he and his young family have been a breath of fresh air there, and he campaigned with a vision of Boone "as a place for all ". Stines and his family attended a Pride event in Boone last spring, and not long afterwards, an anonymous letter circulated to residents including a photo of him and his family there. The letter warned that Stines would "bring woke to Boone. Liberals should not take over Boone." Stines responded that he wanted to support residents who felt under attack by the Iowa legislature, and that his primary focus as mayor, a nonpartisan position, would be on housing, lowering property taxes, economic development, infrastructure, and quality of life investments. Although the mailing violated Iowa law, the letter-writer never was identified.
The retiring mayor supported another candidate. When I sent a small check to Stines' campaign, my husband told me, "He doesn't have a chance." But Stines worked tirelessly, knocking on countless doors, often bringing one or more of his children along, and politely asking residents for their votes.
That's why I'm delighted that the unofficial vote tally from November 7 indicates that Elijah Stines is the new mayor of Boone! "The support and kindness I've received has been overwhelming," he stated. "I'm excited for the future of our city." It's the first time in 20 years that Boone has elected a new mayor.
Elijah Stines and two of his children.
Leaders Step up EMS Funding
Last year, I wrote about the need to fund EMS as an essential service (Without a Net, December 2, 2022). I recalled the early years of my life in Boone County, when my husband was a volunteer fire fighter. The Boone County dispatcher routed both the First Responder and firefighter calls to volunteers' home phones. We no longer have a local First Responders unit, and the town 10 miles north of us regularly pleads for the "next generation of EMTs and drivers". Few volunteers are available during the daytime of the work week, due to their out-of-town job commutes.
In 1981, the federal government shifted its responsibility for EMS to states. Unlike fire and law enforcement, EMS isn't a required essential county service in Iowa. Ambulance drivers and EMTs are reimbursed for completing CPR and EMT courses, in return for a two-year pledge of active service. But most counties, including our neighboring Webster County, receive no tax money.
In 2021, the Iowa legislature passed a law allowing counties to ask their voters to increase income and/or property taxes to support EMS as an essential service. Counties may levy up to 75¢ per 41,000 of valuation. Eight counties placed this referendum on their ballots in 2022, and five counties reached the required 60% threshold for passage: Jones, Kossuth, Osceola, Pocahontas, and Winnebago. Three counties, Calhoun, Floyd, and Worth, voted it down.
As a result of this year's November 7 election, voters in four more counties have made EMS an essential service: Lee, Cedar, Benton, and Shelby. Nine other counties have taken the first step toward making EMS an essential service, but haven't brought it up for a vote. It's up to local leaders to make this happen.
Rural Iowans, like rural Americans, tend to be older, sicker, and poorer. Life-saving emergency medical service is a matter of equity.
EMS and ambulance drivers were called to my brother's farm in northwestern Iowa in the middle of the night during a February blizzard. One ambulance became stuck on the way there. Thanks to their herculean efforts, my brother survived until he reached the hospital 20 miles away.
Religion & Public Schools Mashup
In the past year, I've written about the politicization of school board elections (Vote on November 7 to Keep Iowa a State of Minds, October 28) Although candidates supported by Moms for Liberty and the Family Leader were defeated in Johnston and Ankeny, it doesn't mean Iowans can shift their focus away.
In a neighboring town, eight candidates were vying for three positions, and two incumbents were returned to the board. Surprisingly, the candidate who won the third board position had home-schooled his now-grown children. The expanding number of churches (eight) in this town of 2,000 likely was a factor in his success (No Sanctuary from Secular Conflicts, June 3, 2023). As I wrote, "But, if Main Street continues to fill up with even more places of worship, it's only a few short blocks south to set up shop on Division Street. I think most of us already know the way there."
The newly elected board member's online post stated: "All three men elected are men of faith, who will stand for traditional values of family and church." Traditional values? Three women also were on the ballot, including an exceptionally capable, honest incumbent board member. None were elected.
Both the political right and political left argue that their goal is to protect children. However, when I consider what is damaging to kids today, my focus extends far beyond the books in their schools or at public libraries. Books are mirrors and windows. They both reflect and represent our world, and highlight the issues that our children are likely to encounter: The good, the bad, and the ugly. (Are Books the real threat to our Kids?, February 25, 2023)
I wrote, "Most of all, what has changed about efforts today to ban or challenge books is a willingness to use local and state governing bodies to control teachers and what students should learn."
The Pella Iowa library board prevailed against a ballot measure allowing more control by the city council. (In one national news story, Pella, a town of 10,000 45 minutes from Des Moines, was identified as a Des Moines suburb.) It required courage and leadership for the library board and its supporters to turn back this challenge in a conservative city. Will our public libraries be safe from overreach by Iowa legislators?
Encouraging New Leaders
A few miles away from home, the City of Boxholm, population 180, elected a new council member, Victoria Ella Helling. Helling, her husband and three young children moved here from Fort Worth last June. What motivates a newcomer to run for council? We talked about it over a cup of Salted Caramel coffee, which she prepares and sells at the vegetable stand in their yard along the main highway through town. (You can't buy a cup of coffee anywhere else in town.)
"Ft. Worth is a very large city," she said. "We wanted to give our children a better life, someplace where we would know our neighbors, our kids could have chores on our small farm, and we could connect with a slower pace of life." Her campaign platform revolved around their desire to live in a family-oriented community. "I want to help the council raise funds for new playground equipment," she said.
Last year, I wrote about the last-ditch effort by rural and city leaders in Boxholm and surrounding communities to save Grand Community School's one-story addition from the wrecking ball, and restore it as a community center featuring a gym and a place to host larger events, such as wedding receptions and class reunions, as well as a few businesses, including childcare. (Grand Experiment, November 19, 2022) The new playground equipment will be located there.
Future home of Grand Community Heritage Center
Our polling precinct was moved last year, requiring a 20-mile round trip to vote. But it's worth the effort to elect forward-thinking leaders in our small towns and cities, and onto library and school boards. They're our lifeline to tomorrow. The farm crisis of the '80s and the off shoring of manufacturing jobs drove rural demographics into a downward spiral, resulting in the loss of many potential future leaders. Exhibit A: the burgeoning number of school bond issues on ballots in suburban Des Moines to accommodate our outmigration.
If our children can't remain here to assume the reins of leadership, then it's critically urgent to import and nurture the new human capital that individuals like Elijah Stines and Victoria Ella Helling represent. Quality of life components, including EMS as an essential service, recreational trails, and childcare centers, are the fundamental ingredients to attract families to live in rural Iowa. We need to cultivate a new crop of leaders across Iowa who will focus on bridging our divides instead of creating larger chasms. This November 7's off-year elections offer us a ray of cautious optimism.
Always searching for any glimmer of hope!
Thank you for the mention of community based and funded EMS. Frequently, I drive rural Iowa. The lack of EMS and Iowa State Troopers are two major observations of driving coast to coast in Iowa. From attending my county community police academy in early 2023 I learned there are only 7 Iowa State Troopers on duty during a night shift. That is why troopers try to stay close to bigger cities for backup at night. Rural Iowa is at risk for many reasons.