Latest news with #IowaSafeHavenLaw
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Dog is God spelled backwards': Siouxland nonprofit trains service dogs for veterans
ANTHON, Iowa (KCAU) — Dogs are considered man's best friend, and some dogs go above and beyond helping veterans with their day-to-day lives. For roughly 16 years, 'Partners for Patriots' has helped veterans receive their best friend. 'We train service dogs and provide them to disabled veterans free of charge,' director and lead trainer Cindy Brodie said. The nonprofit works with people in the community to get pups raised up to a year old, and during that time, they're trained in a variety of ways. Two baby girls surrendered under Iowa Safe Haven Law in February 'We test them with a lot of noise, gunfire, firecrackers,' Brodie said. We have a piece of a cement chute that we drag around that is very loud. They have to be very obedient, be used to public access. And then the dogs that react to your nervousness if you get upset and act like you need them, they're there.' Once the pups hit a year old, Brodie begins to work with the dogs on certain tasks like opening a fridge to grab a water. 'We kind of evaluate the dog,' she said. 'Some are always carrying stuff in their mouth, and there are bigger dogs, so we could use them for balance, traumatic brain injury, they pick up stuff for them, they help them down stairs, you know.' However, not all pups are built to carry. 'They're just there if you need them, so they would be amazing for PTSD and, you know, night terrors, stuff like that,' Brodie said. Currently, Partners for Patriots has nine dogs they're training. They find homes for roughly 22 canines a year. While the dogs are free to vets, the process to receive their new best friend is long. How to inspect your roof for damage 'The average time is at least nine months to a year,' Brodie said. 'And there's so many veterans that need help and just, you know, between funding and time, there's two of us training. It takes a lot.' However, when a veteran finally gets their dog… 'The stories will have you in tears and how the dogs have helped them,' Brodie said. 'There's guys and gals alive because of these dogs. Those dogs just get into their soul. I tell people that's why dog is God spelled backwards, because they get into their soul.' If you'd like to volunteer for or donate to Partners for Patriots, . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Siouxlanders pack up food for people in Honduras
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU) — Some Siouxlanders took part in an international food packaging event to help people in a Central American country. Almost 600 people signed up to fill bags in three shifts at the Mater Dei Parish in Sioux City. The packaging event helps local nonprofit 'Then Feed Just One.' Volunteers helped prepare and package dry food goods for people in Honduras. Two baby girls surrendered under Iowa Safe Haven Law in February Each bag that is made contains up to six meals with essential ingredients of minerals and vitamins for children and families who are malnourished and hungry. 'They come here, they know that this is a hands-on way to help the people that are in desperate need,' deacon Rick Roder with the Mater Dei Parish said. 'The program comes from Mother Teresa, who's now a saint, she told us if you can't feed the whole world, then feed just one. So we're here to put some foodstuff together for that one child in Honduras who might be in danger of death or having stunted growth because of hunger.' Deacon Roder says they hoped to prepare more than 160,000 bags for Wednesday's event. To learn more about Then Feed Just One, . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill to help clean up McCook Lake dies in committee
UNION COUNTY, S.D. (KCAU) — South Dakota House Bill 1108 would have created a contingency fund for the restoration of McCook Lake. However, the bill was sent to the 41st day by the House Appropriations Committee, killing the proposal. McCook Lake is a state-owned lake, and the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks (GFP) is in charge of cleaning the lake. GFP hasn't even done an assessment of the damage yet, though, so the cost of restoration isn't known yet. SD House denies reconsideration of prison funding bill 'The progress in terms of cleaning up McCook Lake has been very slow,' McCook Lake Association President Dirk Lohry said. 'It's been eight months since we had this flood on June 23. The Game, Fish, and Parks, which is now in charge of the lake's restoration has been very slow in terms of getting anything done. Their first step is to get a scope of what it takes to get the clean-up done. Once they get the scope done, which is supposed to be next week, but we're crossing our fingers.' Once GFP gets done with its assessment of the damage to McCook Lake, they will take bids on the restoration. The concern with the McCook Lake Association is that they don't know how much restoration GFP is going to do and they don't know the cost or if they will need extra money, which HB 1108 would have addressed. 'The importance of this bill is we aren't real sure what their scope is going to be,' Lohry said. 'It could be to bring the lake back to where it was before, or they could just say it kind of looks fine. Having a tree out in the middle of the lake is kind of natural and we don't think we need to do much of anything other than to just surface, types of things. So that has us concerned.' According to the association, because of the slow progress, one concern is the usability of the lake. Right now, it's not clear if the lake will be usable this summer. Two baby girls surrendered under Iowa Safe Haven Law in February 'Our problem is this lake drains every year, and we'd like to fill it up again and make the lake usable,' Lohry said. 'All of our house values have dropped because there's not a usable lake here. We would like to have a usable lake this summer.' According to South Dakota State Representative William Sharma, who represents McCook Lake, the hope is that once GFP finishes its assessment and the cost of restoration is known, if more money is needed, they can try again next year to get the bill passed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
How to inspect your roof for damage
SIOUX CITY, IOWA (KCAU) — With warm weather ahead, it may be about time to get your roof inspected for damages. During the winter, ice and snow build-up can make an impact on your roof or siding, and not for the better. JC Roofing and Insulations says when it comes to inspecting homes, the one thing they notice frequently is ice damming of residents' gutters. '[Ice damming is] when the snow melt on your roof will start to re freeze near the gutter, and that'll cause a lot of issues with damage to the gutter or it'll start to leak and back up' said Cody Cain, the vie president of JC Roofing and Insulation. 'So, as the weather starts getting warmer, we want to go outside and kind of check for visible damage, any leaks that might've occurred over the winter.' Kuchel Roofing said that if people are uncomfortable with getting on their own roof, they should leave it up to the experts, for their own safety. Two baby girls surrendered under Iowa Safe Haven Law in February 'Most people aren't capable to get up there,' said Cody Kuchel, the co-owner of Kuchel Roofing. 'So leave that up to the professionals. We'll get up there, assess it, take photos to show you, you know, on the ground what the damages look like. We're totally transparent with that.' To check to see if your home is being affected by ice damming, the one thing you want to look for are icicles along the roofs eaves and gutters and to check for any possible leaks. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
