QCA.news - Quad Cities news and view from both sides of the river

Friday, September 18th, 2026
	Ignite Pilates & Wellness Studio grand opening Saturday in Davenport The new boutique reformer pilates studio offers welcoming, energizing classes designed for all experience levels throughout the Quad Cities region.
	Mother, daughter duo open Candle Witch Company in downtown Moline Candle Witch Company at 1421 5th Avenue in Moline is owned by mother, daughter pair Dani Jones and Hannah Rosenbaum. It’s in the former skate shop in downtown Moline.
	Local Head Start leaders push back against proposed program changes Early education leaders opposed proposed federal changes to Head Start, warning they could diminish program quality.
	An orchard in the city: Rock Island man grows pawpaw trees in his backyard Pawpaw fruit are native to North America but unlike anything available in a traditional supermarket.
	Ms. Rachel has entered her album era, and she is so happy about it Ms. Rachel has conquered YouTube, Netflix and the toy aisle. Now she's making an album, with real instruments, big feelings and her littlest listeners in mind.
	Warren Buffett steps down as Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway after serving in the role for more than 50 years. His son, Howard, will become Berkshire Hathaway's new chairman
	South Africa 'feels like a prison' for women amid spate of femicides South Africa has some of the highest rates of violence against women in the world, and a spate of killings of nine women in the same area in recent weeks has led to renewed outrage.
	Why Moline Police are suspending the department's Flock Safety contract Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati says there needs to be a balance between legislation, public sentiment and technology.
	National Cheeseburger Day deals for September 18 From BOGOs to steep discounts, there are plenty of deals for National Cheeseburger Day.
	True or false: Trump's name is now on the Kennedy Center. The quiz has the answer The world made it to another Friday without an AI apocalypse, so here's the quiz! See you next week … maybe.
	'Scour Order' by metal band Krallice is worthy of symphony halls The band's new album, Scour Order, looks back on nearly two decades of making challenging metal and forges a new way forward.
	Could trees developed with gene-editing technology protect Florida's citrus industry? A bacterial infection is wiping out Florida's citrus trees. Growers hope a rootstock developed with gene-editing technology could keep the disease at bay.
	A DHS email raises new questions about the Trump administration's election plans A heavily redacted email from last year, reported first by NPR, reveals that DHS personnel shared a list of jurisdictions that offer election materials in non-English languages. It's unclear why.
	Google is helping write AI chatbot safety laws — while pushing for loopholes As states push to regulate chatbots, tech companies are trying to write safety rules in ways that exempt some of their key products.
	What to know after a week of Houthi attacks that threaten Saudi oil The Houthis' biggest land grab in years reignited Yemen's 12-year civil war and pushed up global fuel prices, extending their reach to a key maritime chokepoint and threatening Saudi Arabia's oil exports.
	It's illegal for armed federal officers to be at polls. Lawsuits seek to ensure that The latest lawsuit, first reported by NPR, argues the Trump administration's repeated suggestions that federal officers could be at polling sites is a form of illegal voter intimidation.
	How to get relief from fall allergies in Iowa WEST DES MOINES, Iowa -- Cold and flu viruses are spreading as temperatures drop and school resumes. But allergies could also be causing the sniffles this year. “Fall can be a big time for allergies," says Dr. Javen Wunschel, a board-certified allergist at The Iowa Clinic. "The biggest thing we’re seeing right now is ragweed [...]
	The driver who slammed into an LA bus before helicopter crash is charged with murder An SUV driver was under the influence of drugs when she swerved into the wrong lane, blew a red light and slammed into a Los Angeles city bus, killing two riders, prosecutors said as they charged her with murder.
Thursday, September 17th, 2026
	Assumption shuts out West 51-0 Assumption football defeated Davenport West 51-0 on Thursday night.
	Rockridge, Riverdale set for showdown of unbeatens The Rockets and the Rams are both 4-0 this season in the Three Rivers Rock Conference.
	Raise your voice about climate change If you watched the news over the last days of August, you saw video of an almost inconceivable wave of destruction in Nepal. Untold numbers of people and both the infrastructure and cultural heritage of this ancient region were swept away. Glaciers in the mountains above a populated valley were weakened by rising global temperatures and came cascading down in a deadly tsunami. It may have seemed a world away, but the reality is you and I caused that disaster as surely as if we had pushed a big red button that released the deluge. You may roll your eyes but it is literally true. Why? How? We have failed over several years to take any significant action on climate change. Meanwhile we consistently produce the most carbon emissions of any country on earth — emissions that are causing the globe to get hotter. Nepal may seem too far away. Put it aside for the moment. What about the weather forecasts seemingly day after day for the past several months putting literally millions of Americans on alert for extreme weather? It’s been record-breaking weather of every description. Snowfall measured in feet instead of inches. Rainfall amounts considered once in a thousand years occurring annually. Los Angeles burning down! There is no need to list them. The majority of Americans now recognize that this extreme weather is the result of human-generated climate change. It’s also clear that at a time when “affordability” squeezes every household, climate degradation is getting costly. Maybe it’s just the added cost of running the AC more or having to crank the furnace higher. Millions of Americans have endured moderate to severe storm damage. The cost of repairs comes either from your own wallet, insurance companies, or some level of government. Inevitably we will all bear increased costs due to these continuing catastrophes. Considering all this, why is virtually no one in political leadership or mainstream journalism talking about it! Why? You know what? It does not matter. As of today — right now — you and I have to start hollering. Imagine if your kids were in a locked car that rolled into the river. That is how loud, and frantically, and persistently we have to yell. Yell! Do not grasp for a complacency based on today’s already eroded standards, thinking we can adjust to this “new normal,” because this is all only going to get worse. And all the data indicates that the rate of decline is quickening. First target of our new-found rage: No candidate for office, either challenger or incumbent, should get our support unless they are committed to a strong position of climate safety action. Complain to the media about their pathetic coverage of the most important story, maybe, in human history. How can they report the weather forecast every 10 minutes but fail to provide any analysis about how rapidly weather is becoming more severe, why that is happening and what the future holds unless we eliminate carbon emissions? Get on your marching shoes. We need to be gathering in large numbers to protest this lack of action by those who control the levers of power in this society. In government, that means both the federal and state leadership. Those culpable include the executive and legislative branches of government for generally gutless lack of action across the board. True, more is happening on the state level than nationally, but not nearly enough. The prime target of our ire ought to be the private sector, which continues to engorge itself at the profit smorgasbord while they kill the earth. They have so far successfully lulled most of the population into somnambulant acquiescence to their path of destruction. But no more. For God’s sake, no more. At this moment, in the days after Labor Day, unions must take up the call: “Workers DEMAND a safe planet!” If unions’ primary role is to safeguard the rights of working people and ensure they enjoy a decent, stable quality of life, what could be more important, more urgent, than fighting to maintain and restore our climate? If the members do not understand it, teach them. DO NOT Continue to be complacent. Do not surrender the future of your children and their children. Complain. Confront. Holler, yell. Raise hell! DEMAND a safe planet. John Harrity is the former president of the Connecticut State Council of Machinists. He lives in East Hartland. Courtesy of CT Mirror
	Brooms and Antlers This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Even the Mississippi River seems to know when it has crossed the Mason-Dixon line. The Upper Mississippi is a Yankee…
	Judy's Family Cafe opening in Aledo on Friday Judy already has two Galesburg locations that have garnered national attention on social media.
	State of Illinois to offer incentives in hunt for new operator of former Tyson Foods plant in Joslin Officials with the governor's office said resources from the Invest in Illinois Fund will be offered to help incentivize a new buyer.
	Recall Roundup: Fire truck toys, dairy free ice cream, heated blankets Check your receipts for any of these items being recalled from retailers around the country.
	State of Illinois to help search for new operator of former Tyson Foods plant in Joslin Officials with the governor's office said resources from the Invest in Illinois Fund will be offered to help incentivize a new buyer.
	Train stopped in west end of Davenport Several blocks to the west of Gaines Street are blocked off while police respond to the situation.
	Here's why Moline Police are suspending the department's Flock Safety contract Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati says there needs to be a balance between legislation, public sentiment and technology.
	Clinton Symphony will open season with Beethoven's 'Eroica' Beethoven’s Third Symphony, the “Eroica” is the featured work on Clinton Symphony Orchestra’s 73rd season opener. The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, in the Durgin Performing Arts Center at Clinton High School. Silas Nathaniel Huff will conduct the orchestra of 50 area musicians. Huff was recently named a finalist in the [...]
	Head Start proposal draws concern from local advocates Local advocates raise concerns over a federal proposal to expand Head Start without added funding, warning of cuts to bilingual programs and health screenings.
	Arizona asks US Supreme Court to halt prison healthcare takeover in ‘Hail Mary’ filing Photo by Matthew Hendley \| Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0Attorneys for Arizona’s prison system ran to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to make one last plea to delay a court-ordered takeover of its healthcare system. A federal district court judge and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals already denied the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry’s request to put off receivership of the prison healthcare system until an appeals court makes a final call. But in a final attempt to buy more time, a lawyer for the Corrections Department argued the state is entitled to the opportunity to fully argue its case before it loses control of its employees, its contractors and its multimillion-dollar healthcare budget. “The gravity of that action and the costly and disruptive consequences for the department and the state are hard to overstate,” former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement wrote in an application to stay filed with the high court on Sept. 16. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. An attorney representing the roughly 25,000 inmates in Arizona prisons called the request a “Hail Mary” and noted they had yet to receive a deadline to respond to the stay request. But in any case, Corene Kendrick, deputy director of the American Civil Liberties Union National Prison Project, said their clients cannot wait any longer for constitutional healthcare. “You wish that the time and money that they’re spending on fancy Supreme Court attorneys to write these briefs for them were better spent focusing on improving the healthcare and implementing the reforms and working collaboratively so that the receiver can get in place.” Kendrick said. Inmates first sued the department in 2012, alleging prison medical, mental and dental care posed a threat of serious injury and death and constituted “cruel and unusual punishment” under the Eighth Amendment. After more than a decade of litigation and an ultimately unsuccessful settlement agreement, Judge Roslyn Silver issued a final injunction in 2023, finding the department’s healthcare system was “plainly grossly inadequate.” Two years after the order, attorneys for the plaintiffs claimed slow progress by the department and continual harm to the state’s incarcerated population warranted a takeover of prison healthcare. And in February, citing after court-appointed monitors reported the department’s failure to comply with 131 of the court order’s 154 “quality indicators” and eight deaths in custody, Silver greenlit receivership. She then appointed Annette Chambers-Smith, former director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, to serve as receiver, effective Oct. 19. The department immediately sought a stay to delay Chambers-Smith’s start date until after the receivership issue was decided by the appellate court. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals declined to press pause but agreed to speed up briefing on the appeal. The department then filed a last-ditch request for a stay on the Supreme Court’s “shadow docket,” where justices can decide on emergency and procedural orders without oral argument, extensive briefing or written opinions. In the filing, Clement argued receivership is meant to be the “remedy of last resort” but has not been treated as such by the district court. “Rather, the court reached for one of the most powerful and federalism-defying tools in its arsenal as a first resort when the state did not promptly live up to the court’s expectations under a wide-ranging and demanding injunction,” Clement wrote. He claimed Silver had ignored the improvements the department has made since she issued her final injunction in March 2023 and incorrectly focused on the more than decadelong history of litigation. The arguments are largely the same as the Corrections Department argued before Silver and the appellate court when they asked those courts to pause the receivership. Clement contended the department had made “tangible” progress since Silver’s final order, pointing to the department’s work growing its healthcare staff by more than 50%, opening and improving facilities, increasing access to treatment for substance-use disorder and implementing a new model of care. He added that Silver’s order was “impatient,” too, as the receiver was allowed a minimum of five years to fix the healthcare system, while the department had less than three between the final injunction and the receivership order. At bottom, Clement said Silver was legally required to start with the least invasive fix and move toward receivership only after initial attempts to compel compliance failed. “The district court inverted that approach here, dropping the proverbial nuclear bomb without exhausting less devastating firepower,” Clement wrote. Kendrick noted that Silver had, in fact, taken steps to push the department in the right direction. “The facts and the history shows that (Silver) has bent over backwards for years, and court judges before her tried to avoid receivership,” Kendrick said. “But ADCRR was just so intransigent that she found that it was absolutely necessary.” Kendrick said attorneys for the plaintiffs are waiting on the justices to set a deadline for response. Meanwhile, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is starting to delve into the merits of the receivership order itself. In an opening brief filed Sept. 15, the department’s attorneys leaned on the same arguments presented in the bid to the Supreme Court. A response from the plaintiffs is due Oct. 15. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Arizona Mirror
	Drop in Nebraskans receiving public food assistance hastens, drawing concern at hearing Together food pantry in downtown Omaha helps people in need pack up free grocery items during a past holiday season. The number of Nebraskans receiving public food assistance has dropped since the Trump administration's stricter eligibility and work requirements were implemented in summer of 2025. Advocates are concerned, saying some who need help aren't getting it and that pressure is weighing on private pantries and food banks. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)LINCOLN — The number of Nebraskans receiving public food assistance continues a downward slide, punctuated by recent back-to-back record drops in monthly participation since the state began releasing public SNAP data in 2014. The latest figures show that about 7,600 fewer Nebraskans were enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in July compared with the month before. Total participation was 116,703 Nebraskans, down from about 150,000 a year ago. July beat June in terms of the biggest single-month loss of SNAP participants in more than a decade and since the summer of 2025, when Congress approved a massive tax-and-spending-cuts package described by President Donald Trump as big and beautiful. In a legislative hearing Thursday, a Nebraska Appleseed nutrition advocate sounded further alarm. Eric Savaiano, manager of food and nutrition access and economic justice for the nonprofit Nebraska Appleseed. (Courtesy of Nebraska Appleseed) Records show that compared with July 2025, nearly 33,000 fewer people in Nebraska received public food assistance this July, a nearly 22% dip over the year. Eric Savaiano, the nonprofit Appeseed’s manager for food and nutrition access, said about half of that loss represents Nebraska youth and teens under age 19, with 13% of the total annual loss being infants and children under 5. He called that shocking and said the decline does not mean “someone solved hunger last summer.” “Fewer people on SNAP means hungry people, half of which are children, are experiencing more strain and struggle, more trips to limited food pantries and food banks, and more long-term pain for school nutrition programs and educators for the foreseeable future,” Savaiano said. He laid out concerns during a hearing before the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee. Though the focus was an interim study on food insecurity for pregnant and postpartum women and their children in Nebraska, SNAP emerged as part of the discussion. Call for ‘accountability’ The committee chair, state Sen. Brian Hardin of Gering, took a challenging stance and asked Savaiano if there should be “accountability” for people to work if they’re being provided public food benefits. Recent declines in SNAP and other public benefits have been tied to eligibility changes and stricter work requirements called for in the 2025 tax and spending measure. The Trump administration said it wanted to curb waste, fraud and abuse and spend federal dollars wisely. The Department of Agriculture covers the cost of SNAP benefits. States administer the program and share those administrative costs with the federal government. Hardin said much of the national debt is related to health “in some way, shape or form.” State Sen. Brian Hardin of Gering. (Photo courtesy of Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) “If we don’t go after something in the health space, we will never get a handle on that,” Hardin said after Savaiano’s testimony. “And if we don’t get a handle on that national debt, what happens to Nebraska?” Savaiano responded, “Are we doing that on the backs of people who need the support right now?” Appleseed officials believe that Nebraska’s declining SNAP participation has been exacerbated by the state’s implementation in May of new eligibility verification requirements for all applicants. Savaiano said states have flexibility in their verification process and that Appleseed believes the tactics employed by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services are overly burdensome and have scared off some Nebraskans who need aid. He hopes for future legislation to rein in the process. Savaiano said, for example, that Nebraska SNAP beneficiaries must certify the number of people who live in their household, and that can take the form of getting a neighbor to sign paperwork. Savaiano referred to the case of a rural Nebraskan who balked, saying her neighbors would laugh and make her life miserable. She no longer participates in the program. Protecting taxpayer dollars A spokesperson for Nebraska DHHS acknowledged that the state’s drop in SNAP participation is in part due to stepped-up verification requirements. Jeff Powell, the spokesperson, said the process was created in response to the federal law change and requirement that states maintain a SNAP payment error rate below 6%. States with error rates above that threshold, beginning in October 2027, must pay a portion of federal benefit costs. Nebraska was one of only nine states with a reported error rate below 6%. Error rates measure the accuracy of states in determining who is eligible for SNAP and how much they receive. “The enhanced verification measures will ensure program integrity, error rates remain below 6%, and taxpayer dollars are protected,” said Powell. The entrance to a Big Lots store in Portland, Oregon. (Stock photo by hapabapa/Getty Images) He said Nebraska has reduced the instances when the “honor system” is used. He said that is “critical” to remaining below the error threshold. “DHHS is working to streamline the new measures to achieve quicker benefit determinations and will ensure that all Nebraskans eligible for SNAP benefits can receive them,” Powell said. State Sen. Victor Rountree of Bellevue, who had requested that the Legislature examine food insecurity particularly for women and their children, noted during the hearing that Gov. Jim Pillen signed a proclamation declaring Sept. 14-18 as Malnutrition Awareness Week. Only two members of the committee were present at Thursday’s hearing, though it was livestreamed and recorded. Rountree testified that many pantries and food banks have been running low on healthier items as Nebraska families are leaning more on private food providers. Healthy brain development Among experts invited to speak was Abbie Raikes, a professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center whose focus is on early childhood development. She said she was speaking as a private individual and noted that nutrition in early years is essential for healthy brain development. She and other academics who spoke said food insecurity can negatively affect school readiness, academics and behavior. Rountree asked members to consider the testimony when acting on future legislation related to low-income Nebraskans. “Develop well now so we can have our children in school able to learn and be productive members in our society,” he said. Most recent Nebraska SNAP statistics reflect activity through July. (Courtesy of Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services) SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Courtesy of Nebraska Examiner
	The Roadless Rule rollback is an opportunity not a threat An Alaska Forest Practices Act compliant forest road is seen in what was previously an unroaded forest setting. (Photo courtesy of Keith Coulter)While environmentalists oppose the Trump administration’s proposed rollback of the Roadless Rule, which would remove prohibitions on road construction and logging on nearly 59 million acres of national forest, I see this as an opportunity for professional foresters to manage federal land, reduce wildfire risk and boost the economy. I’ve spent 30 years in the industrial logging sector of the Western U.S. in states such as Idaho, Washington, Oregon and Alaska. Environmental rhetoric is nothing new to those of us who have chosen to make working in western forests their career. Recently, I read a commentary in the Alaska Beacon that argued for maintaining the Roadless Rule and I was not surprised to view the typical laundry list of doom from one side of the debate. Words like “threatened” and “imperiled” come up as authors weave their case for almost certain environmental ruin unless we curb industrial activities immediately for what can only be described as the “do-nothing alternative.” As a professional forester with decades of boots-on-the-ground experience, a few obvious counterpoints come to mind. The rhetoric that forests are a stagnant sea of trees that do not grow or become more dense year after year is simply wrong. That’s a Forestry 101 issue. You’d think something this simplistic would be understood by the average environmentalist: forests do grow, year after year, becoming denser. In a warming climate with limited resources of water, nutrients, space, sunlight and dwindling snowpack, continued growth will inevitably lead to insect and disease issues, dying trees and catastrophic wildfire. Look at the news. The wildfire epidemic appears to be growing year to year and lasting longer each year due to warmer winters and dwindling snowpack. Catastrophic wildfire events are real and increasingly common. People are dying. Whole communities are being lost. Throughout my career I’ve watched the environmentalist movement become very successful. It has demonized building roads, tree cutting and forest management as a whole. Regions of the Western U.S. and Alaska that used to have large milling infrastructure are now idled and gone. There is no one left to do the work or send the logs to mills because they aren’t there. There are few ways to complete forest restoration work, because there are no longer markets for the material. Revenue from the logging industry that can support public schools is in decline. Had forest management activities been allowed to continue, forests could be managed and local economies supported in the effort. One hundred years of fire suppression in the western forests means they are overstocked as the climate warms. From what you know about forests, even if it is just a little: what do you think is going to happen in those areas in the years to come? I’m not sure what the environmentalists’ long-term goal is, other than “preserve the forests and the forests will take care of themselves.” The evidence does not support that message. Their messaging to “do nothing” seems reckless and misplaced. The sediment contribution to nearby water bodies from a well- managed forest road is probably difficult to even measure when compared to the benefits of accessing areas that can be managed for forest health, wood products, jobs and long-term recreation, resulting in stronger regional economies. Now, let’s consider what the contribution to sediment loads in fish bearing creeks or watersheds that supply drinking water to scores of people are after a catastrophic wildfire burns through an area. Keep in mind that forest operations in the Western U.S. and Alaska have strict forest practices rules and regulations. Timber harvesting is inspected by not only State agency forestry professionals but also Dept of Fish and Game and the Dept of Environmental Conservation representatives. Western states have strict regulatory standards that the forest industry must adhere to while simultaneously creating fire resilient and healthy forest ecosystems. The forest products sector is largely our only hope for navigating our way out of the overstocked forest problem that blankets the Western U.S. There are thousands of professional foresters and land managers that have been trained by Society of American Foresters accredited universities working to improve forest health across the nation. I disagree with environmental organizations that want to stop science-based management of forests in the name of preservation, regardless of the cost to local economies. Arguing for the preservation of the Roadless Rule puts mother nature in the driver’s seat — and few people will be able to tolerate how she’ll manage the forests if it happens through destructive wildfire events. We already know how to solve forest management issues: with roads and active forest management. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Courtesy of Alaska Beacon
	Taco Throwdown Festival will blend food, music, wrestling in Rock Falls Rock Falls Tourism will bring together an evening of food, entertainment and family fun at the Taco Throwdown Festival on Friday, Sept. 25, at the RB&W District. The Taco Throwdown Festival will be 4-10 p.m. at the RB&W District, 201 E. 2nd St., Rock Falls. The event celebrates National Hispanic Heritage Month and will feature [...]
	Quad Cities early education leaders speak out against potential changes to Head Start Proposed federal changes to Head Start could affect language instruction, class sizes and local control, prompting concerns from Quad Cities advocates.
	Bicyclist airlifted to Iowa City for treatment after Rock Island crash Officers responded to a crash involving a bicyclist and a vehicle in the 3500 block of Fifth Avenue on Thursday afternoon, police say.
	Hispanic Heritage Month: Moline restaurant serves authentic family recipes rooted in Mexican heritage Meet a local family who overcame hurdles to share a piece of their heritage with the Quad Cities.
	Quad Cities Heart Walk brings people together around CPR, survivors & heart health This year's Heart Walk will be on Saturday, Sept. 19 in Bettendorf and emceed by James Zahara. Here's how your attendance will help save lives.
	State of Illinois provides help to attract buyers for former Tyson plant in Joslin Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) on Thursday announced that the State of Illinois is making resources available through the Invest in Illinois Fund to help attract potential buyers for the former Tyson Foods beef facility in Joslin, according to a news release from the Illinois Department of [...]
	Quad Cities International Airport receives over $200k in federal funding The funding comes from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Airport Improvement Grant Program.
	Former Mulkey's becoming a sushi and hibachi restaurant A banner on the building has made the announcement, but no further details were provided.
	Iowa audit: Governor’s office salaries up 35% while other departments shrank Salaries for the Iowa Governor’s office and Secretary of State’s office have gone up while many other state departments saw budget cuts, according to a new report from the Iowa State Auditor.
	The unique farm buildings of Iowa are on display at this weekend's All-State Barn Tour Richard Tyler doesn’t know why he decided to purchase the Secrest Octagonal Barn in 1992; he just knew it was something he wanted to do.
	Section of Muscatine County road will close to traffic for paving project Beginning Tuesday, September 22, 230th Street (G28) between Iowa Highway 70 and the intersection of Atwood Avenue will be closed to traffic for a PCC paving project, according to the Muscatine County Road Department. Construction is anticipated to be suspended late this fall and resume in the spring of 2027. The project is tentatively scheduled [...]
	T'storm chances hang around for the weekend We've had at least a chance for rain several days in a row, and that stretch doesn't end soon enough for some people! Storm chances are here Friday morning, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. And it's a big weekend for some - it's homecoming! The weather will be dry for most games Friday evening. But, there's [...]
	WIU to highlight new emergency operations center with ribbon cutting Western Illinois University in Macomb is holding a ribbon cutting ceremony for a new state-of-the-art emergency operations center.
	Crime Stoppers: Man wanted by Iowa Department of Corrections for escape Jones, 33, is 5-foot-8, 170 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.
	Crime Stoppers: Moline police searching for woman who rented vehicle under false name, never returned it Police said the woman gave a false name that was later reported in an identity theft report.
	Crime Stoppers: Man wanted in Rock Island County for failure to appear in court on burglary, drugs and other charges Lawrence Dean is wanted by the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Office for failure to appear for burglary, domestic abuse, manufacturing ecstasy pills and failure to register as a sex offender.
	Join the annual Quad Cities Heart walk this weekend! WQAD is proud to sponsor the Heart Walk, and our own James Zahara will be emceeing the event!
	Knox-Galesburg Symphony opens for its 75th season on Saturday The symphony will perform "A Little Night Music" at the Orpheum Theatre.
	Comments open for proposed Head Start changes Area Head Start programs are speaking out about potential changes to the program and asking government officials to pull back the proposed rules. The changes include implementing English-only instructions. Locally, 66 percent of Head Start's student demographic is bilingual. Another proposal would remove any restrictions on student-to-teacher ratio. Supporters of Head Start say health services [...]
	Former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, a GOP ‘giant’ and ‘workhorse’ who shaped water policy, dies at 84 Former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, a longtime Republican lawmaker from Arizona who shaped landmark water policies in the U.S. West and guided the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, has died.
	Riverssance Festival of Fine Art returns with 75 artists, live music, tasty food and drinks The Riverssance Festival of Fine Art returns to Lindsay Park Sept. 19–20 with more than 75 artists, live music, food, family activities and the presentation of the 2026 Harley Award.
	Students learn to share the road with farm equipment ahead of harvest Nearly 175 students in Henry County participated in the program.
	Former Moline High School director starts scholarship fund, plans variety show Sue Wignall directed plays and musicals at Moline High School for 20 years before she retired.
	City of Morrison provides update on U. S. Route 30 reconstruction project The City of Morison has provided an update about the Illinois Department of Transportation's ongoing U. S. Route 30 reconstruction project through Morrison: "IDOT has indicated that comments submitted through this email address will be reviewed and considered as part of the project decision-making process," the update says. Additional information, including background on the project [...]
	Trump withdraws Lance Schroyer, a former Oklahoma state trooper, as his nominee to lead ICE The White House says it is withdrawing its nomination of Lance Schroyer, a former Oklahoma state trooper, to lead ICE, ensuring that an agency at the forefront of President Trump's domestic agenda will remain without a Senate-confirmed leader for at least a while longer.
	1 airlifted to Iowa City after bicycle/vehicle crash in Rock Island One person was airlifted to Iowa City after a crash between a vehicle and a bicyclist in Rock Island this afternoon. An email from the Rock Island Police Department said officers responded to the 3500 block of 5th Avenue on September 17 at about 1 p.m. for a report of a single vehicle vs. bicyclist [...]
	QC Head Start leaders work to oppose federal program changes Leaders of Illinois Quad Cities Head Start programs are opposing proposed federal regulations that would roll back standards on teacher qualifications, staff support, curricula and health screenings.
	Iowa’s unemployment rate remains at 3.2% in August Iowa’s unemployment rate remained steady at 3.2% for the month of August, according to Iowa Workforce Development.
	ICE agent appears in Minnesota court to face charges in the shooting of a Venezuelan immigrant Christian Castro, a federal immigration officer, made his first court appearance in Minnesota since he was booked Wednesday into a local jail. Castro faces multiple state and federal charges in connection with a shooting during the immigration surge in Minnesota.
	Former Iowa Kid Captain Nile Kron dies at 9 years old Former University of Iowa Kid Captain, Nile Kron, died on September 15 at 9 years old.
	We want to see your Halloween displays Show us your spooky season displays by submitting a picture or video here!
	What’s driving the push for faster home renovations in 2026? The global home renovation market was valued at $2.05 trillion in 2025, reflecting the scale of an industry that sits at the intersection of real estate, construction, and consumer spending. For homeowners and real estate investors alike, renovations can increase property values while making homes more comfortable, efficient, and functional, reports Reece Windows & Doors.But creating that value is almost never a straightforward, stress-free process.This is why there’s a push for a faster, more predictable approach to renovation. Homeowners want projects completed with less disruption, while contractors are under increasing pressure to improve efficiency, shorten timelines, and deliver on their estimates. Contractors who can increase their speed of service without sacrificing quality will find themselves in a better position to increase their business prospects. Reece Windows & Doors Why Homeowners Demand Faster TimelinesWhether it’s a new kitchen, a bathroom remodel, or a full-home renovation, projects routinely exceed their original timelines and budgets.Once work begins, residents have to navigate the disruption of living through construction. Contractors, meanwhile, feel pressured to produce quicker results.How Minimizing Disruption Saves Time and MoneyDuring home renovations, workers often have to be inside a residence, which can be disruptive. Between the materials needed to protect the home, dust particles, materials being stored, and noise, there can be severe disruptions to the living space while work is ongoing.Residents understand that this is part of a renovation project, but they also want the process to be as quick as possible. It’s important for contractors to properly evaluate a project so that they can give the most accurate timeline possible. It’s also important to ensure that all materials are in hand before work begins so that timelines aren’t disrupted by logistical failures.Why Bundling Multiple Projects Reduces Total CostsFor homeowners facing multiple renovation needs, tackling everything in a single, coordinated project can be more efficient than working on one issue at a time. If a renovation already causes noise, dust, and contractors to be in the house, it makes sense to address several projects at once.A kitchen remodel, for example, can be combined with a bathroom renovation and plumbing upgrades. The same approach can extend to other parts of the home, such as making window and door replacements part of a larger project that also includes ventilation and insulation upgrades.Bundling several projects into one carefully coordinated renovation can minimize disruption and reduce the need for repeated work. There may also be a financial advantage for homeowners who choose to work with a single contractor.For contractors, this helps increase the scope of a project so they receive more money up front, but it also means that supplies can be ordered in bulk and shipped once, saving on delivery fees. It also means that they can schedule workers once instead of over multiple projects.How Faster Renovations Lower Hidden ExpensesFor property investors, faster renovations can translate directly into lower costs. Every day a project runs past its original deadline can add expenses, from temporary housing and storage to lost rental income.Shortening the renovation timeline by even a few weeks can bring a property back onto the rental market sooner, helping investors recoup lost income and improve the project’s overall economics.For homeowners, a faster renovation can mean fewer nights in a hotel, less time paying for off-site storage, and less disruption to everyday life.Delivering Faster Home RenovationsFaster home renovations shouldn’t mean low quality or cutting corners. Efficiency should come from good planning, solid decision-making, and working with experts who value their clients’ time and convenience.Most renovation delays stem from supply issues, poor scheduling, and mid-project changes. By removing these hurdles from the start, contractors can maintain high standards and keep timelines tight.There are two strategies that contractors also employ to make fast turnaround possible:Pre-project decision-makingParallel workflowsWhy Pre-Project Decisions Prevent DelaysThe first strategy requires the major decisions to be made before construction begins. Materials, fixtures, finishes, work schedules, and other project details are finalized in advance, with the necessary equipment, supplies, and resources ordered and ready before the project begins.The contractor and homeowner also agree upfront to avoid mid-project changes, while any surprises (inevitable in most renovations) are addressed within the framework of the original schedule. Communication is essential; it’s important for contractors to let their clients know what could go wrong so that there’s a plan before work begins. For example, if mold is found, does the homeowner give the contractor permission to undertake mold remediation immediately? Making these decisions before work begins can save both parties time.Parallel WorkflowsThe parallel workflow strategy draws on the principles of multi-project management and focuses on running multiple workstreams in parallel.One crew, for example, can handle the electrical work while another takes care of plumbing. This approach can be particularly effective for projects that combine several renovations, allowing different teams to work simultaneously rather than waiting for one phase to finish before the next begins.Home owners want renovations with shorter timelines, less disruption, and high quality. While it may seem like an operational challenge, contractors have risen to the challenge and created systems and workflows that meet demand. Renovation businesses can improve customer satisfaction and increase their revenue with the right strategies.This story was produced by Reece Windows & Doors and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Second arrest made in connection to 18-month-old THC overdose Another arrest was made on Wednesday afternoon in connection to an 18-month-old child overdosing on THC wax in June.
	Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mississippi Valley hosts cleanup day Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mississippi Valley brought volunteers to Sylvan Island for some cleanup work. High school students and families, Big Brothers Big Sisters and City of Moline employees worked together to clean up the park. Mayor pro tem Alan Silas presented a proclamation declaring September National Big Brothers Big Sisters Month. Organizers [...]
	Body found in Grand Canyon was missing Wyoming man, wife says GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz.— Human remains found in the Grand Canyon this week were those of the last remaining person missing after the deadly flash flooding in late August, the victim’s wife said Thursday. The discovery of Timothy Allen Smith brought the death toll to three from flooding that devastated the Phantom Ranch area at the canyon bottom and damaged the water pipeline serving the South Rim. Smith, 53, was a pilot from western Wyoming’s Star Valley. His remains were found Monday near Crystal Rapids on the Colorado River that runs through the canyon. The remains of Smith’s two backcountry companions, Brent Rosenkranz, 42, and John Giusti, 46, both of Granbury, Texas, were found earlier. Dave Black, an incident commander at Grand Canyon National Park, provides updates on deadly flash flooding from the canyon’s South Rim in northern Arizona on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil) Smith grew up in Granbury and lived with his wife in Star Valley Ranch, about 50 miles southwest of Jackson. He, Rosenkranz and Giusti were on a multiday hiking, fishing and camping trip when flooding swept through the Grand Canyon. During the two-day deluge, searchers used night vision and other equipment to find people in need of rescue. They relied on the Grand Canyon National Park’s permit system and checked vehicle license plates to track those still missing. More than 80 people were rescued. Soon, only Smith was missing. In a Facebook video at the time, his wife, Carrie, and their children thanked people for their support and prayers. On Tuesday morning, Carrie Smith posted on Facebook that the family was aware a body had been found a day earlier and asked others to pray with them. Smith confirmed in a Facebook post on Thursday that the remains had been identified as her husband’s. “My family has done a lot of waiting over the last three weeks … waiting and hoping Tim (Daddy) would come home, waiting and wondering if the remains found were Tim (Daddy),” she wrote. “We no longer have to wait, Tim was found two days ago by the Rangers at Grand Canyon National Park. Not in the way we had hoped, but we know that he was doing something he loved with John and Brent.” She added, “We know that these three men loved the Lord and were a shining light for Him. The impact their lives had on others is still being shown to our families daily.” The Coconino County medical examiner confirmed Smith’s identity, the National Park Service said in a statement Thursday that thanked the searchers and extended condolences to relatives and friends of the three men. This photo provided by the National Park Service shows people being evacuated by helicopter due to flash flooding in Grand Canyon National Park, in northern Arizona, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. (Katherine Hensel/National Park Service via AP) The flooding began Aug. 29 during the summer monsoon, or rainy, season when clear skies can quickly give way to thunderstorms and heavy rain. A desert landscape can funnel water from a deluge into sudden torrents that rage down previously dry gullies and canyons. The rain fell on part of a North Rim burn area left after a lightning-caused wildfire in July 2025. The fire destroyed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, cabins and other structures. Burn areas can worsen flash flooding because there’s less vegetation to absorb runoff. The flooding damaged a pipeline that supplies water to millions of tourists and residents. Insufficient water caused all overnight lodging to be halted until the pipeline could be restored. National Park Service officials said recently that they expected to restore a reliable water supply in the canyon in weeks — not months — after determining most of a near-complete pipeline project was not damaged during the flash flood. Many hiking trails and lodging areas remain closed, and water has been shut off in the inner canyon, prompting advisories that hikers bring their own water or water filtration devices. Another flash flood hit the canyon along Bright Angel Creek and the Colorado River during a storm Wednesday, park officials said. No injuries were reported. Authorities said efforts to minimize personnel in the canyon before the storm, as well as flash flood warnings, enabled crews to reach safety. Damage assessments were underway. The post Body found in Grand Canyon was missing Wyoming man, wife says appeared first on WyoFile . Courtesy of WyoFile
	Beating breast cancer through “Gather for the Cure” Funds raised at the event go toward breast cancer screening for those who can’t afford it or don’t have health insurance.
	Can an AI chatbot save lives by answering texts about pregnancy? Many questions come up during pregnancy. Is swelling normal? Are avocados safe to eat? For folks in Kenya who don't have a search engine at their fingertips, a chatbot is offering a lifeline.
	California quiere prohibir el matrimonio infantil. ¿Por qué estos grupos de derechos civiles intentan impedirlo? This article is also available in English. Read it here. Fue en marzo cuando un grupo de legisladores de California decidió abordar un tema delicado: el matrimonio infantil. Durante los próximos tres meses, los demócratas idearían un plan para persuadir a sus colegas reticentes de que finalmente prohibieran esta práctica y se enfrentarían a los grupos de interés especiales que pudieran trabajar en su contra. Para sorpresa de muchos, en California es legal que cualquier persona menor de 18 años se case, siempre y cuando un padre y un juez lo aprueben. Quizás aún más sorprendente sea que dos grupos influyentes en la política demócrata —la Unión Estadounidense por las Libertades Civiles y Planned Parenthood— han apoyado firmemente esta ley históricamente. La ACLU argumenta que los niños tienen derecho a casarse, y privarlos de ese derecho les arrebataría el camino hacia su emancipación y la posibilidad de tomar decisiones independientes sobre su salud. Para Planned Parenthood, la libertad de los niños para casarse implica permitir que las personas elijan su propio cuerpo y tengan autonomía sobre su salud. Solo otros dos estados —Nuevo México y Misisipi— no tienen edad mínima para casarse. Y aunque en California los menores pueden contraer matrimonio a cualquier edad, los defensores de los derechos civiles afirman que es difícil contratar a un abogado de divorcio antes de los 18 años. Según la organización sin fines de lucro Unchained at Last , cada año se casan alrededor de 9000 menores en California, la gran mayoría niñas que contraen matrimonio con hombres adultos. Dado que la edad de consentimiento para la actividad sexual es de 18 años, los defensores afirman que los matrimonios entre menores de 18 años y adultos legalizan implícitamente una relación sexual que, de otro modo, se consideraría violación estatutaria según la ley estatal. Durante la última década, la organización ha trabajado para impulsar prohibiciones en Nueva York, Oklahoma, Washington y una docena de otros estados. Pero sus esfuerzos han fracasado repetidamente en California, donde Planned Parenthood y la ACLU han presionado fuertemente en contra de la restricción del matrimonio infantil, aunque esos grupos se han mantenido en gran medida en silencio sobre el tema en otros estados controlados por los demócratas. Esto se explica en parte por su enorme influencia en la política californiana. Planned Parenthood aboga por algunas de las causas liberales más importantes y ha donado al menos 2.7 millones de dólares a legisladores demócratas desde 2002, según la base de datos de Democracia Digital de CalMatters. Este año, los demócratas se enfrentaron a circunstancias diferentes con la organización, lo que llevó a los legisladores demócratas a presentar en junio el Proyecto de Ley 1267 de la Asamblea para prohibir finalmente el matrimonio infantil. La asambleísta Gail Pellerin redactó el proyecto de ley mediante un procedimiento conocido como “modificación radical”, en el que los legisladores eliminan el texto de un proyecto de ley no relacionado para acelerar la aprobación de uno nuevo una vez vencido el plazo para presentar proyectos de ley por la vía habitual. Según los defensores de la causa, los demócratas no cumplieron con el plazo porque querían asegurarse de que Planned Parenthood no interfiriera. Si bien la ACLU se opuso nuevamente a la legislación este año, no se encontró a ningún lobista abogando por el derecho de los menores a contraer matrimonio en las audiencias del comité este verano, y Planned Parenthood se mantuvo “neutral” respecto al proyecto de ley, negándose a tomar una postura. Y aunque algunos demócratas expresaron dudas sobre la conveniencia de no permitir que dos adolescentes enamorados contrajeran matrimonio, la prohibición fue aprobada por la Legislatura con un apoyo casi unánime en agosto. “Debemos dejar claro que las niñas, a pesar de su aparente madurez, son niñas”, dijo Pellerin en una entrevista. “Las niñas no tienen una libertad sin protección”. Tras casi una década de intentos fallidos por prohibir el matrimonio infantil, el proyecto de ley ahora espera la firma o el veto del gobernador Gavin Newsom. Tiene hasta el 30 de septiembre para hacerlo. La portavoz de la ACLU, Carmen King, se negó a responder preguntas sobre por qué el grupo se opone al proyecto de ley y no puso a nadie a disposición de CalMatters para una entrevista para este artículo. En una carta de oposición de junio, la organización escribió: “Prohibir que los menores se casen en todos los casos supone una desviación del compromiso de larga data de California de respetar la capacidad de los menores para tomar decisiones personales importantes por sí mismos, particularmente en el ámbito de la autonomía reproductiva”. Planned Parenthood no hizo ninguna declaración oficial sobre el proyecto de ley y la portavoz Shelby McMichael se negó a que nadie concediera una entrevista a CalMatters. En un comunicado enviado por correo electrónico, McMichael afirmó que el grupo “adopta posturas proyecto de ley por proyecto de ley en cada sesión. Dado el recorte de fondos a los centros de salud de Planned Parenthood el año pasado, decidimos priorizar los temas relacionados con la administración Trump y los constantes ataques de los republicanos del Congreso contra la atención médica”. “La voz de Planned Parenthood importa” Sus servicios de atención al aborto en más de 100 clínicas en todo el estado han convertido a Planned Parenthood en un símbolo de libertad reproductiva en California durante décadas, aunque la organización señala que los servicios de aborto representan solo una fracción de sus servicios. Su estrecha relación con la política demócrata se acentuó durante las administraciones de Trump, ya que los líderes del partido trabajaron arduamente para evitar los intentos de recorte de fondos federales. En febrero, los legisladores de California aprobaron 140 millones de dólares en fondos de emergencia para la organización con el fin de compensar los recortes federales. Además, en su sitio web, Planned Parenthood lleva un registro de la frecuencia con la que los legisladores votan a favor de su postura. En su informe de 2025, todos los demócratas, excepto uno, obtuvieron una puntuación del 100%. Hace dos años, la asambleísta de Irvine, Cottie Petrie-Norris , demócrata, presentó el proyecto de ley 2924 de la Asamblea para prohibir el matrimonio de menores de edad. El asambleísta Ash Kalra les dijo a los defensores que Planned Parenthood tenía que retirar su oposición antes de que los legisladores pudieran considerar votar sobre la legislación. El demócrata de San José, presidente del Comité Judicial de la Asamblea, afirmó que prohibir el matrimonio a menores de edad pondría en peligro su derecho al aborto, derecho que, según él, California aún no ha consagrado en la ley. Los votantes consagraron el derecho al aborto en 2022, dos años antes de que se presentara el proyecto de ley de 2024. Algunos legisladores también se mostraron escépticos sobre la exactitud de los datos relativos a los matrimonios infantiles, dijo Kalra. Nunca sometió el proyecto de ley a debate. “Creo que ese fue sin duda uno de los factores”, dijo Kalra refiriéndose a la oposición de Planned Parenthood y a su decisión de rechazar la legislación. “La opinión de Planned Parenthood importa en este caso, y en otros asuntos que se nos presentan en el Capitolio”. Este razonamiento recordaba intentos anteriores fallidos, incluido el de 2017, cuando los demócratas rechazaron otro proyecto de ley para modificar las leyes estatales sobre el matrimonio infantil por razones similares. El entonces senador Jerry Hill dijo que buscó una prohibición total de esta práctica después de enterarse de que una niña de 13 años de su distrito estaba comprometida con un hombre de 38 años de otro país. «Pensé: “¿Quién podría oponerse a eso? ¿Quién podría decir que está mal?”», dijo Hill sobre el proyecto de ley que presentó para prohibir el matrimonio infantil. Pero le desconcertó que lo que él consideraba una propuesta política de sentido común se convirtiera en un debate más amplio sobre las diferencias culturales, la libertad de la infancia y la autonomía corporal. En algunas culturas es aceptable que las niñas se casen con hombres mayores o que sean obligadas a contraer matrimonios concertados, según un informe de las Naciones Unidas. En los últimos años, los legisladores han propuesto medidas para reprimir los matrimonios forzados, que ya son un delito. Kalra es una de ellas; este año, presentó el Proyecto de Ley 2534 de la Asamblea, que permitiría a las víctimas solicitar una orden de alejamiento contra cualquier persona que las obligue a contraer matrimonio. Kalra y las organizaciones de derechos de las mujeres afirman que, de aprobarse, sería la primera ley de este tipo en el país. Planned Parenthood la apoya. En relación con la legislación sobre el matrimonio infantil de 2017, la ACLU y Planned Parenthood se opusieron firmemente, y la entonces asambleísta Lorena González , una líder sindical demócrata que presidía el Comité de Asignaciones de la Asamblea en ese momento, le dijo a Hill que no permitiría que la prohibición siguiera adelante a menos que se enmendara para reducir la edad mínima a 16 o 17 años en lugar de 18. Ese proyecto de ley acabó suavizándose hasta convertirse en la ley actual: cualquier joven puede casarse si uno de sus padres y los tribunales dan su consentimiento. Hill afirmó que su intento y otros fueron frustrados por grupos de interés. “Estos grupos de interés en Sacramento son muy poderosos. Tienen mucha influencia sobre lo que se aprueba en la Legislatura”, dijo Hill, quien representó a Silicon Valley durante 12 años. “La política se impone a las políticas públicas en aproximadamente el 80% de los casos”. González lo recordaba de otra manera. Si bien es cierto que se negó a que se aprobara una prohibición total, dijo, no recuerda que Planned Parenthood se opusiera al proyecto de ley ni que lo tuviera en cuenta en su proceso de toma de decisiones. Según contó, cuando las chicas adolescentes mayores de su distrito quedaban embarazadas, era común que algunas familias latinas las animaran a casarse con el padre si este tenía la misma edad o una edad similar. “Tuve chicas que me decían que esta era la mejor opción”, declaró González a CalMatters. Añadió que la diferencia de edad entre los cónyuges parecía importar más que el matrimonio en sí. “En aquel entonces, me parecía muy clasista” imponer una prohibición absoluta, afirmó. ‘Al menos estamos aquí ahora’ La iniciativa del presidente Donald Trump para recortar la financiación de las clínicas de Planned Parenthood ejerció una presión política mayor de lo habitual sobre la organización en los últimos años e hizo que esta dependiera más de la financiación estatal. La situación empeoró el pasado mes de noviembre, cuando un artículo de opinión del New York Times criticó a la ACLU y a Planned Parenthood por su papel en el bloqueo de la legislación contra el matrimonio infantil, mientras que estados controlados por los republicanos, como Arkansas y Luisiana, imponían restricciones más estrictas. Para Sara Tasneem, superviviente y activista, la inacción de California durante varias décadas permitió que su padre la obligara a casarse a los 15 años con un hombre de 28. Según ella, su padre formaba parte de una secta sufí del norte de California que orquestó el matrimonio. Cuando su padre se enteró de que Tasneem salía con un compañero de instituto, le buscó a alguien con quien casarse. «Me entregaron a un completo desconocido al que acababa de conocer», dijo. Abandonó la escuela y fue violada repetidamente, sintiéndose atrapada e incapaz de irse antes de cumplir los 18 años porque, al ser menor de edad, no podía contratar un abogado. Tasneem contó que tuvo dos hijos con su violador, a quien dejó en 2003, a los 23 años, llevándose consigo a sus hijos. Al reflexionar sobre su pasado y darse cuenta de que “no creció con mucho poder”, Tasneem se dedicó al activismo más de una década después. La mayoría de los defensores confían en que Newsom firme el proyecto de ley. “¿Debería haber ocurrido una década antes? Sí, debería haber ocurrido”, dijo Fraidy Reiss, directora ejecutiva de Unchained at Last, quien a los 19 años se vio obligada a casarse con un hombre mayor en su comunidad judía ortodoxa de Nueva York. “Pero al menos estamos aquí ahora”. Courtesy of Cal Matters
	Former Thomson prison employee sentenced for sexually abusing 2 inmates Danny Spyker, 42, will spend more than three years behind bars.
	Davenport Community School District sells vacant land they have held for decades The vacant land was acquired for potential future expansion several decades ago but found to be no longer needed after a reassessment.
	Davenport Community School District sells vacant land they have held for decades The vacant land was acquired for potential future expansion several decades ago but found to be no longer needed after a reassessment.
	What are postbiotics? An important factor in gut health You’ve probably heard of prebiotics and probiotics—two key components of the digestive system. Postbiotics, on the other hand, don’t get nearly the same level of attention when it comes to gut health support: Many people haven’t even heard of postbiotics, much less considered incorporating them into their routines.In light of recent research suggesting that postbiotics are just as important as probiotics and prebiotics in supporting our gut bacteria, a hybrid approach might be your best bet. Ritual shares what you need to know about postbiotics.What Are Postbiotics?Postbiotics can be defined as bioactive compounds produced by food-grade microorganisms during a fermentation process—specifically, when the “good bacteria” in your gut digest and break down portions of dietary fiber and prebiotics, which are typically found in complex plant carbohydrates. A natural byproduct of this process is the production of short-chain fatty acids. And just like probiotics, postbiotics may be working behind the scenes to support our gut health. However, unlike probiotics, they are inanimate microorganisms.Here’s a quick look at the definitions of these different biotics:Prebiotics: Prebiotics can be defined as nondigestible food components that support the growth of probiotics and the beneficial bacteria that exist inside the gastrointestinal tract.Probiotics: Probiotics are defined by the World Health Organization as live bacteria that may provide health benefits when consumed in adequate amounts. These microorganisms can be found in foods (sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, kombucha) and probiotic supplements.Postbiotics: Postbiotics may help support our gut barrier health and function by providing a major energy source to the cells that make up the lining of the gut.Benefits of PostbioticsPostbiotics provide fuel to the cells that make up the gut lining and support our gut barrier function. Beneficial bacteria selectively ferment certain things, like prebiotics and some types of fiber. One consequence of this fermentation is the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), like butyrate, acetate, and propionate.Butyrate is the main callout here: Studies show it’s the primary energy source for the cells that line the colon.How to Support Postbiotic ProductionThere are ways to support the postbiotic concentration in the gut. Since postbiotics are one of the results of the fermentation process, an option is to increase the consumption of foods that provide fiber and prebiotics. This may naturally increase the production of postbiotics in the colon.A few prebiotic foods include leeks, Jerusalem artichokes, asparagus, onions, wheat, garlic, chicory, oats, and soybeans. Making sure you’re getting enough foods that encourage a mix of healthy gut bacteria (fiber and prebiotic foods) may help support your overall digestive health.What to Look For in a Postbiotic SupplementTo get a hybrid of prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics in your daily routine, you might opt for a synbiotic supplement, which combines all three. By choosing to add a clinically studied postbiotic supplement to your routine, you can circumvent the hurdles of modern life—picky partners, busy schedules, even limited access to certain foods—and ensure you’re making a consistent effort to support your gut health, no matter your diet or lifestyle.This story was produced by Ritual and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	More than a mess: Research finds disorganized homes increase stress Feeling anxious and can’t figure out why? It might be that mess in the living room.“As clutter increases, so do stress and anxiety,” Jillian Amodio, a licensed master social worker, therapist and founder of Moms for Mental Health, explains to Closets by Design, a custom closet and home organization company.A growing body of research backs her up, linking household clutter to measurable changes in stress, focus, and mood.In a study published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, researchers affiliated with UCLA's Center on Everyday Lives of Families found that women who described their homes with words like "cluttered" and "unfinished" showed daily cortisol patterns that were associated with chronic stress. Their moods also showed a decline over the course of the day. People who described their homes in terms of rest, relaxation, and organization showed the opposite pattern.Those small hormone changes can cause big trouble, says Amodio. “Increased levels of stress can lead to irritability, poor quality of sleep, strained or tense relationships.”But the effect reaches beyond stress hormones. “Visually crowded spaces continually pull on our attention,” says therapist Jessica Ronyak, a licensed mental health counselor and licensed professional clinical counselor.Indeed, Neuroscientists at Princeton University reported in the Journal of Neuroscience that visual clutter competes for the brain's limited attention, reducing its ability to focus and process information.In practical terms, a crowded desk or countertop is not just an eyesore. “This constant pull can create a low-grade strain on our mental capacity,” says Ronyak, “especially when we’re already focusing on so much.”In experiments, participants performing tasks in organized settings outperformed those surrounded by visual noise, even when the clutter had nothing to do with the task at hand.Clutter also appears to shape how people feel about home itself. “Clutter can cause shame or self-criticism,” Ronyak says. A 2016 study in the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that people reporting more clutter felt less comfort and security in their homes and reported lower life satisfaction overall.“We see clutter as something ‘bad’ or embarrassing,” Ronyak explains, “then internalize it as a personal failure rather than a situational one.”Related research in Current Psychology has tied clutter to procrastination in adults of every generation, suggesting the pile and the delay feed each other. Amodio notes that “poor performance, missed deadlines, trouble prioritizing, task abandonment, falling short of goals, or behind on tasks and obligations,” are often the result.A 2025 study in the Journal of Environmental Psychology is careful about the direction of the arrow. Clutter does not cause depression, and an organized closet is not a treatment for anxiety or any other condition. What the evidence describes is closer to a loop. Francis Quinn of Robert Gordon University writes that low well-being may lead to more clutter, "which in turn makes well-being worse."It’s “an ongoing and unintentional strain that can hinder concentration and energy levels,” says Stephanie Steele-Wren, who has a professional doctoral degree in psychology and a health service provider in psychology certification. Stress makes it harder to keep things in order. The disorder that results becomes its own low hum of stress, quietly making everything else harder.This cycle points toward modest, repeatable habits as a solution rather than dramatic, home improvement show-style overhauls.“Start with just one surface—like a bedside table or a section of your bathroom counter—and celebrate those little wins,” suggests Steele-Wren.Storage design plays a role as well. Giving every category a designated place removes the daily decision-making that lets clutter accumulate.Above all, Ronyak suggests progress, not perfection. “Instead of aiming for total completion, set short time frames, like decluttering for just 10 minutes before taking a break.” The goal is to keep at it consistently, and the research suggests the payoff is more than cosmetic. A more organized home, the data indicates, tends to be a calmer one.“A perfectly tidy home isn’t necessary for good mental health,” Steele-Wren says. “What really matters is having a space that soothes rather than stresses you.”This story was produced by Closets by Design and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Pay It Forward: Quad Cities woman helps find homes for dozens of cats Amanda Casterton helps cats find homes and gives hope to people in need, with a $300 Pay It Forward gift helping support her work with Animal Aid.
	Another arrest made after child overdoses on THC in Davenport A woman was arrested on Wednesday in connection to the 18-month-old child who overdosed on THC in June.
	Davenport officials cheer business as 'big win' for west end Davenport city officials cheered the announcement of Infiltrator Water Technologies investing in an unused building in the west end of Davenport.
	Rockridge Junior/Senior High evacuated after gas line hit Students at Rockridge Junior High/High School ended their school week early after a gas line was accidentally hit at the building. A post on the Rockridge CUSD #300 Facebook page said a gas line was accidentally hit and the area has been evacuated. There have been no reports of injuries. Students who did not drive [...]
	Bouillon vs. broth vs. stock: What are the key differences? If you’ve ever stood in your kitchen holding a carton of broth in one hand and a jar of bouillon in the other, wondering if it really matters which one you use, you’re not alone.They all add savory depth. They all build soups, sauces, and grains. But they are not the same thing, and understanding the difference makes cooking easier and more intuitive.The good news is that you do not need to simmer bones all afternoon to build rich flavor. Ingredients like bouillon paste, granulated bouillon and concentrated stock give you that same foundation in minutes.Knorr breaks it down simply.Stock vs Broth vs Bouillon: What’s the Difference?Stock, broth, and bouillon all start with the same goal: flavor. Knorr Stock comes from simmering bones with vegetables and aromatics for several hours. As the bones cook down, they release collagen, which gives stock its body and slightly silky texture. Chefs often rely on stock when they want richness without heavy seasoning.Broth is usually lighter. It comes from simmering meat with vegetables and salt. You can sip broth on its own. Many home cooks use it as a ready-to-go broth base for soups, rice, and quick weeknight meals.Bouillon works differently because it’s concentrated. You’ll find it in cubes, granulated powder or bouillon paste form. When you dissolve bouillon in water, you create a broth base in minutes. Because it acts as a concentrated flavor base, it delivers deep, savory notes without long cooking times.Bouillon paste blends smoothly and lets you adjust the strength exactly the way you like it.Quick Comparison: Stock vs Broth vs Bouillon Paste Knorr How to Make Broth from BouillonMaking broth from bouillon is straightforward.Bring water to a boil. Add 1/2 cube or 3/4 teaspoon of granulated bouillon per cup of water. Stir until it dissolves.That’s it. No long simmer. No waiting around. Knorr You now have a savory broth base ready for soup, rice, vegetables, or sauces. If you prefer a stronger flavor, add a little more. If you want it lighter, dilute slightly. You’re in control.How to Make Broth from Bouillon PasteBouillon paste works the same way, but can be preferred, as it blends smoothly and measures easily. If you want flexibility and speed, bouillon paste often wins.Here is how to use bouillon paste:Heat water until it simmers. Stir in a small spoonful of bouillon paste. Let it dissolve completely. Taste and adjust.Since bouillon paste is concentrated, start small. You can always add more.If you’re wondering how to use bouillon paste beyond soup, think about how you normally season food. Stir it into pan sauces. Mix it into mashed potatoes. Add it to risotto while it cooks. Toss it with roasted vegetables before they go into the oven. Use it in marinades.Bouillon pastes act as both a broth base and a flavor base. You can dissolve it in water or add it directly into a dish for deeper savory notes.FAQAre stock and broth interchangeable in recipes?In most everyday cooking, yes. Stock brings more body. Broth brings more seasoning. If you swap one for the other in a soup or sauce, the dish will still work. Just taste as you go and adjust salt if needed.Think of both as broth bases that give you a head start. Can you substitute bouillon for broth in recipes?Absolutely.Dissolve bouillon or bouillon paste in water, and you have an instant broth base. It’s one reason many home cooks keep it in the pantry. It saves time and reduces waste since you can make exactly the amount you need.Because bouillon functions as a concentrated flavor base, check the seasoning before adding more salt.Can you substitute bouillon for stock?Many home cooks do, especially in soups, stews, and braises.Concentrated stocks and bouillon pastes offer a layered, developed taste that works beautifully in place of homemade stock. They give you depth without long simmer times.When you dissolve bouillon paste in water, you create a stock-like broth base that works in most recipes.Everyday Ways to Use Bouillon and Bouillon PasteBouillon is not just for soup.You can use it to:Build a quick broth base for soups and stewsSeason or marinate meat, chicken, fish, or vegetables before roastingStrengthen a quick pan sauceBoost flavor in rice or quinoaAdd depth to pasta waterEnhance slow cooker mealsBecause bouillon paste acts as a concentrated flavor base, you can stir it directly into dishes for an extra layer of savory flavor.People Also Ask What is broth?Broth is a savory liquid made by simmering meat, vegetables, and seasoning in water. It has a lighter texture than stock and often comes seasoned, which makes it easy to use as a broth base for soups, stews, and grains. Many people also enjoy broth on its own.What is stock?Stock is made by simmering bones with vegetables and aromatics for several hours. As the bones cook, they release collagen, which gives stock a richer body and slightly thicker texture. Cooks often use stock as a foundation for sauces and braises because it adds depth without heavy seasoning.What is the main difference between bouillon and broth?Broth comes ready as a liquid. Bouillon is concentrated. When you dissolve bouillon or bouillon paste in water, you create a broth base. Bouillon can also function as a flavor base in recipes.Is bouillon paste stronger than broth?Yes. Bouillon paste is concentrated. You adjust the amount to control how bold the flavor becomes. How do I adjust a recipe when using bouillon instead of stock?Dissolve bouillon or bouillon paste in water first. Taste before adding extra salt. Since bouillon acts as a concentrated flavor base, it already contains seasoning.The Bottom LineStock, broth, and bouillon all help you build flavor. The difference comes down to time, concentration, and flexibility. Some nights you have time to simmer. Most nights you don’t. The right flavor base helps you cook confidently either way.This story was produced by Knorr and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	The week in hip-hip: the game theory of Lil Durk's acquittal A murder trial, a meme and the unending search for meaning. Plus: Colin Kaepernick fires back at Jay-Z and Macklemore walks the talk.
	How license plate readers helped Iowa police catch a suspect in a fatal hit-and-run Des Moines Police are crediting their license plate readers in helping them find the vehicle involved in a deadly hit-and-run within hours.
	Davenport century-old homes renovated for refugee families Two large, century-old homes in Davenport that once faced demolition now have a new chapter and a new purpose after an 18-month effort by the Foundation of First Presbyterian Church and Tapestry Farms. An event on Monday, Sept. 21 at 9 a.m. will celebrate the preservation of homes that will soon provide safe, affordable and [...]
	Pay It Forward \| Quad Cities woman supporting feline friends After experiencing a chaotic home with multiple cats and kittens, Lori Oetzel found Amanda Casterton, who's working to give cats their best chance at life.
	Gas leak prompts evacuation of Rockridge High School on Thursday morning The district said Rockridge High School and Junior High were evacuated Thursday morning after a gas line was accidentally hit.
	3 expert ways to maintain health as you age Sorry, but your browser does not support the video tag. var bptVideoPlayer = document.getElementById("bptVideoPlayer"); if (bptVideoPlayer) { var cssText = "width: 100%;"; cssText += " background: url('" + bptVideoPlayer.getAttribute("poster") + "');"; cssText += " -webkit-background-size: cover;"; cssText += " -moz-background-size: cover;"; cssText += " -o-background-size: cover;"; cssText += " background-size: cover;"; bptVideoPlayer.style.cssText = cssText; var bptVideoPlayerContainer = document.getElementById("bptVideoPlayerContainer"); if (bptVideoPlayerContainer) { setTimeout(function () { bptVideoPlayerContainer.style.cssText = "display: block; position: relative; margin-bottom: 10px;"; var isIE = navigator.userAgent.match(/ MSIE(([0 - 9] +)(\.[0 - 9] +) ?) /); var isEdge = navigator.userAgent.indexOf("Edge") > -1 \|\| navigator.userAgent.indexOf("Trident") > -1; if (isIE \|\| isEdge) { fixVideoPoster(); } }, 1000); } var bptVideoPlayButton = document.getElementById("bptVideoPlayButton"); if (bptVideoPlayButton) { bptVideoPlayButton.addEventListener("click", function () { bptVideoPlayer.play(); }, false); bptVideoPlayer.addEventListener("play", function () { bptVideoPlayButton.style.cssText = "display: none;"; }, false); } var mainImage = document.getElementById("mainImageImgContainer_sm"); if (mainImage) { mainImage.style.cssText = "display: none;"; } var mainImage = document.getElementById("photo-noresize"); if (mainImage) { mainImage.style.cssText = "display: none;"; } var assetGallery = document.getElementsByClassName("asset_gallery")[0]; if (assetGallery) { assetGallery.style.cssText = "display: none;"; } var assetGallery = document.getElementsByClassName("trb_article_leadart")[0]; if (assetGallery) { assetGallery.style.cssText = "display: none;"; } var assetGallery = document.querySelectorAll("[src='https://d372qxeqh8y72i.cloudfront.net/acf27694-3459-4207-b946-ccbbf48bee28_web.jpg']")[0]; if (assetGallery) { assetGallery.style.cssText = "display: none;"; } } function fixVideoPoster() { var videoPlayer = document.getElementById("bptVideoPlayer"); var videoPoster = document.getElementById("bptVideoPoster"); fixVideoPosterPosition(videoPlayer, videoPoster, true); window.onresize = function() { fixVideoPosterPosition(videoPlayer, videoPoster); }; videoPoster.onclick = function() { videoPlayer.play(); videoPoster.style.display = "none"; }; videoPlayer.onplay = function() { videoPoster.style.display = "none"; }; } function fixVideoPosterPosition(videoPlayer, videoPoster, display) { setTimeout(function () { var videoPosition = videoPlayer.getBoundingClientRect(); videoPoster.style.position = "absolute"; videoPoster.style.top = "0"; videoPoster.style.left = "0"; videoPoster.style.width = videoPlayer.offsetWidth + "px"; videoPoster.style.height = (videoPlayer.offsetHeight + 20) + "px"; if (display) { videoPoster.style.display = "inline"; } }, 1010); } (BPT) - As we get older, our health needs often become more complex. Taking a proactive approach to your health can help, but many people don't know where to start."One of the most common questions I hear from older adults and their caregivers is: 'What's the best thing I can do for my health right now?'" said Dr. Heidi Schwarzwald, chief medical officer at Signify Health. "My answer is simple: start by understanding your whole health — mind and body."Once you understand your current health needs, you can identify areas to better support your physical and cognitive health. In honor of Healthy Aging Month, Schwarzwald offers three simple steps to help you or your loved one stay healthy, independent and engaged.Manage and prevent chronic conditionsChronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and kidney disease are common in older adults, making prevention and day-to-day management especially important. In fact, according to the National Council on Aging, nearly 80% of adults ages 65 and older are managing two or more chronic conditions.But developing a chronic condition isn't a foregone conclusion. You can make changes to your life to lower your risk."As a physician, I constantly emphasize physical activity and nutrition because of how powerful they are in managing these conditions and preventing them from happening in the first place or getting worse," said Schwarzwald.When it comes to staying active, Schwarzwald recommends keeping it simple and approachable, like taking a brisk walk, gardening or doing chair exercises. To create balanced meals, make sure you're eating a consistent diet of whole grains, healthy fats, lean proteins, fruits and vegetables. These foods can support heart health and help prevent blood sugar spikes.It is also important to know your key health numbers. If you don't know your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels, talk with your primary care provider so you can better understand where you may need extra support.Support cognitive healthPhysical activity and balanced nutrition pull double duty by supporting your physical and mental health. The same habits that support the body can also help you stay sharp, focused and engaged.Mental activities also play a major role in your cognitive health as you age. Schwarzwald suggests enjoyable hobbies like reading, puzzles, games and creative activities such as painting, knitting, cooking or writing to help keep the mind active.If you've always wanted to learn a new language or ballroom dance, now is the time to give it a try. Why? Because learning new skills can strengthen connections between brain cells and help build new ones.Don't forget to stay social, too! Social activities can support overall well-being and can boost your happiness. Strive to build new social connections while nurturing your existing relationships by spending time with family and friends, attending community events or volunteering.After all your physical, mental and social activity, remember to prioritize a good night's sleep. Getting enough rest at night can help you stay sharp and focused during your daily activities while also supporting learning and memory.Understand your medications and supplementsRegular medication review plays an important part in keeping you safe and independent. As you age, your body may respond differently to medications. A medication that worked well years ago may no longer be necessary, and it could contribute to side effects such as dizziness, fatigue or brain fog.This may sound like a difficult task, but it can actually be fairly simple."I recommend making a list of the medications you take, the dosage and how often you take them," said Schwarzwald. "Include prescription and over-the-counter medications, as well as supplements, and meet with your primary care provider. They can review your list and look for potential side effects, drug interactions and medications that may not be needed anymore."Get a head startGetting started is often the hardest part of any task, but you don't have to do it alone. Signify Health works with health plans to offer eligible members an In-Home Health Evaluation (IHE). During the in-home visit, a licensed clinician — nurse practitioner, physician, physician assistant — performs a medication review, health assessment and discusses physical and cognitive health needs. They are there to answer your questions and can work with you to create a health management plan with personalized recommendations for you to discuss with your primary care provider.After the visit, you and your primary care provider will also receive a visit summary. If you don't have a primary care provider, Signify Health can help connect you with an in-network provider. Many health plans offer IHEs to eligible members at no extra cost. To learn more, check your eligibility or schedule an In-Home Health Evaluation, visit HelloSignify.com or call 1-855-984-5121.
	Why September is a good time for a fireplace upgrade As summer winds down, cooler evenings and familiar routines make your home feel especially inviting. September is the perfect time to think about how your space can feel warmer and more comfortable as the seasons change, including considering upgrading your fireplace. Whether you’re replacing an old wood-burning fireplace or updating an outdated gas model, the change can offer a more modern look, less maintenance, and greater convenience. Planning the upgrade before colder weather arrives gives you time to find the right option for your space and have it ready for the season ahead, Modern Flames reports.Industry data also points to early fall as an important time in the hearth market. In a September Business Climate survey from Hearth & Home, 48% of hearth retailers reported year-over-year sales increases, while overall hearth sales rose 3% compared with the previous September. The survey offers a snapshot of how interest in hearth products begins building as the seasons change and homeowners start preparing for cooler weather.An update can also be an opportunity to rethink the style of your space. A fireplace is often one of the first features people notice when entering a living room, bedroom, or gathering area. Replacing an outdated unit with a cleaner, more contemporary design can give the surrounding room an updated feel without a complete remodel. A new mantel, built-in shelving, or refreshed artwork and décor can help create a more intentional focal point. Changes don’t have to be dramatic to make a room feel refreshed.That focus on the fireplace as part of the overall design of a home reflects a larger shift within the industry. Grand View Research reports that home renovations and remodeling are helping drive demand for electric fireplaces as homeowners look for products that combine aesthetic appeal with functional heating. The firm also found that wall-mounted models represented 42% of the U.S. electric fireplace market in 2024, highlighting the growing role of streamlined fireplace designs in contemporary spaces.Beyond appearance, think about how you want to use your fireplace. For homeowners, a traditional wood-burning fireplace can create a beautiful atmosphere, but gathering firewood, handling ash cleanup, and starting a fire every time you want to enjoy it can make a wood-burning fireplace less convenient for some. An electric fireplace can offer a more convenient way to bring that same sense of warmth and ambiance into the home. With less preparation and maintenance, it can become a feature you enjoy on an ordinary evening rather than something reserved for a special occasion or particularly a cold day.Interest in electric fireplaces is also growing. According to Grand View Research, the U.S. electric fireplace market reached approximately $1.81 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $3.11 billion by 2033. The research points to factors including advances in realistic flame technology and smart-home features, along with a growing demand for renovation projects.September also provides something that can be harder to find once the cold weather arrives: time to plan. Instead of making a quick decision because you’re ready to turn on the heat, you can compare styles and consider any installation or surround updates you may want to make. Taking care of these details early means your fireplace can be ready to enjoy.September is that sweet spot where it’s early enough to make updates but also close enough to cooler weather that you’ll be able to enjoy the fireplace as the nights get cooler. Upgrading a fireplace is about more than preparing for cold temperatures. It’s a chance to create a focal point that feels more current, functions better for everyday life, and makes the surrounding space a place you want to spend time.This story was produced by Modern Flames and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Why youth sports fields are struggling to stay playable Children who play sports are used to competing, but the fight is supposed to be over the ball—not the field on which teams play. Yet, around the country, athletic field access is becoming increasingly scarce, as nonprofit and municipal recreation centers face staffing shortages and struggle to maintain their grounds, despite rising demand for youth programming.In one Florida community, a municipal center called its sports-field shortage a “turf war” after having to turn away 700 children due to insufficient access. Nonprofit centers struggle too, as more than 58% of YMCA facilities said staffing issues were their top concern in 2025, according to Recreation Management magazine.Ahead, Navimow examines how staffing shortages are hitting community facilities in unexpected ways.In Ohio, a missing mow cycle can close a fieldStaffing shortages hit the lowest-paid, most seasonally variable positions hardest. For recreation sports leagues, those positions are often members of the grounds crew, a role that demands precision and skill. The Sports Field Management Association dictates that recreational turfgrass ought to be carefully irrigated and sloped, cut to a length that never dips below ⅔ of the grass’ blade size.Alan Little, the YMCA of Central Ohio’s executive director of capital asset advancement, told Navimow that the full-time maintenance employee at the Hilliker YMCA in Bellefontaine has a long list of responsibilities, including lawn care, among several other tasks. More than 40 hours of the employee’s week go toward maintaining the building and indoor spaces, including pools, gym and fitness areas. The same employee handles HVAC, plumbing and electrical work. Turf maintenance competes with all of those demands for limited hours.The YMCA of Central Ohio operates 12 locations. At Hilliker, three of the facility’s four acres of turf are used for outdoor programming, including summer camps, youth sports, teen leadership clubs and more. Those programs depend on grass that is short and even enough for children and adults to use safely.At the YMCA’s Hilliard and Grove City locations, lawns around outdoor pools are used by swim teams in the early morning and by members relaxing around the pool later in the day. That all-day use schedule leaves landscaping contractors a narrow window for mowing—and some weeks there is no workable opening.The result can be an overgrown lawn and more weeds and insects. “It not only makes the area look unkept, but increases the pressure from broadleaf weeds and the stinging insects that frequent the weed’s flowers,” Little said.For sports fields, the consequences of overgrown grass can include tripping hazards for athletes and attracting difficult-to-spot ticks. For some facilities, missing one mowing cycle can be enough to temporarily close a field.‘Hit in the face’ in MarylandOfficiant crews similarly feel the pinch of disappearing staff. Umpires spend upwards of $500 on training and uniforms, equipping themselves to make whip-fast judgement calls during gameplay—yet about 70% of sports officials leave after one year, according to Bill Topp, president of the National Association of Sports Officials.In one Maryland suburb, a youth baseball umpire reported getting “hit in the face, groin, shin, foot, hand and head,” during athletic action, while being paid just $40 per game. At least 50% of sports officials report fearing for their safety when tough calls spark heated exchanges between spectators, according to a 2023 survey of 35,000 referees.This growing thanklessness of labor like lawncare and officiating might explain why, in nearby Baltimore City, recent municipal budgets allocated $1 million towards administrative roles, but left one of its 14 districts without a youth recreation center or pool, a choice that attracted scrutiny.What departments are tryingLittle says Hilliker has been paying an outside landscaping contractor to mow 28 times per year. The annual cost for that is $9,372, or just under $335 per week during the non-winter months. He recently tested a robo-mower and expects a one-time purchase of automated mowing fleets to replace the annual cost year over year.Parks departments and nonprofit centers are also using several other approaches to manage labor costs and maintain their grounds.Contractor consolidation and shared servicesSome local governments are combining and sharing grounds-maintenance work between multiple government departments or neighboring agencies.In Bergen County, New Jersey, officials approved a two-year shared-services agreement in June 2026 between the municipality and Bergen Community College. The deal covers mowing, landscaping, athletic-field maintenance and maintenance-garage management.In Lebanon Township, New Jersey, a 2026 resolution provides the local school district with mowing, snow removal, equipment hauling and loans for certain pieces of machinery, all funded by the municipality.Volunteer and community programsSome park systems have shifted part of their maintenance workload to the organizations using their fields. More specifically, they shift work to the volunteers who support those organizations.Fairfax County, Virginia, has an adopt-a-field program in which local sports teams and leagues sign up to maintain a designated field. The county describes the program as a partnership between the park authority and community athletic organizations and says that it “fosters a sense of pride.”Wage and schedule changesCommunities around the U.S. have started raising seasonal pay to attract workers who can handle the jobs required to keep athletic programming alive.City officials in Plainview, Minnesota, increased seasonal pay in 2025 by 1.5%, which brought their seasonal mower rate to $15.83 an hour and $14.78 for trimmers.AutomationRobotic mowers are entering the mix at parks and recreation facilities nationwide to account for the shortage of labor.In Gwinnett County, Georgia, an autonomous mower was deployed at a 10-acre soccer facility after conventional equipment broke down. Mowing the group of fields had previously required 25 hours of staff time each week, but required virtually zero once groundskeepers turned to automation.As the YMCA of Central Ohio tests autonomous mowers at its Hilliker location in Bellefontaine, Little said the organization plans to purchase another unit and maintain the whole property with autonomous equipment for its 2027 season.When there aren't enough workers, the grass still growsThe labor shortage parks and recreation departments face is part of a larger workforce problem. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reported in May 2026 that the labor force participation rate has been declining for 26 years. It sat at about 66% in 2000 and fell to the low 60s during the pandemic. Since 2021, it’s hovered between 62% and 63%.When organizations and cities deprioritize outdoor recreation, children feel the consequences most. It’s a public health matter, as participation in childhood sports is closely linked with benefits like improved mood, social bonding and even a reduction in chronic disease.But community centers and parks don’t get to wait for the labor market to catch up. The grass still needs mowing, and children’s memories still need to be made.This story was produced by Navimow and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	A year ago, President Trump pledged to lower Medicaid drug prices. Has that happened? The Trump administration's efforts to lower drug prices included promised changes to Medicaid. But it's still unclear which drugs will be affected. And each state has to opt in.
	What “Super El Niño” means for winter in eastern Iowa and western Illinois Record-breaking ocean temperatures could mean milder winters and lower heating bills ahead
	User-friendly CRMs are giving small businesses their training time back. Here’s how to use it. Investing in a leading user-friendly CRM should see your sales and marketing teams save most (if not all) the hours they would have dedicated to training. The trick is to use the time saved to your advantage.But what does “user-friendly” really mean?A user-friendly CRM is a customer relationship management platform built to make navigating and using the app as easy as possible. These CRMs close the gap between implementation and onboarding, helping teams reduce downtime and remain productive as they move from their previous system to the new CRM. And they give teams time to develop more impactful skills.This Nutshell guide gives teams insight into determining which skills to develop, prioritize, and measure, to ensure the training time they recover truly gives them the upper hand.Key takeawaysUser-friendly CRMs make it easier for teams to get up and running quickly and free up time for more advanced CRM training.Some of the most beneficial revenue-driving CRM skills are custom reporting, workflow automation, and pipeline refinement.A strategic, high-level training plan gives teams the skills they need to master their CRM software and gain a competitive advantage.Why is basic CRM adoption just the beginning?Switching to a simple CRM that’s easy to pick up and use offers teams a real advantage because it fast-tracks their understanding of the new system. High-performing teams are using the time gained to develop skills that distinguish them from other teams.CRM adoption is the level to which a team adopts a CRM and the depth at which it uses its features. Teams implementing a simple, easy-to-learn CRM system leverage the time saved to increase CRM adoption beyond basic contact management, elevating system usage to a real competitive advantage.What should teams learn once they know the basics?Once they have basic CRM functionality down pat, teams should expand their learning to include refining their sales pipelines and setting up smart automations. It’s also incredibly beneficial to understand how to build custom reports to track performance and spot opportunities.With these additional skills, teams will realize how powerful their CRM system can be in helping them become more efficient and productive. Leveling up their CRM usage this way helps them move from basic data entry to work that impacts sales revenue and business goals. Nutshell Building custom reports that surface real insightsCustom reporting is about configuring your CRM reporting settings to track and evaluate the metrics that matter most to your team. It takes CRM reporting beyond standard report setups, allowing teams to pinpoint data to answer questions specific to their business.Building custom reports and dashboards helps teams and leadership identify trends early and spot bottlenecks compromising the sales process. Using the data unlocked from these custom reports, teams can make informed decisions based on real data.A 2024 study by Salesforce shows that sales teams spend a whopping 70% of their time doing administrative, repetitive tasks and only 30% of their time actually selling. Deliberate, tailored reporting shared across the team can help reps gain that vital selling time back.Setting up automation that takes care of the follow-upSales automation is the use of CRM automation tools to initiate an action based on a specific trigger with little to no human intervention. It’s typically tied to the completion of a task or a lead progressing from one stage to the next in the sales pipeline. Automation is a great way to handle time-consuming tasks like repetitive outreach and follow-ups.In modern CRMs, AI and automation work hand-in-hand, heavily optimizing processes to save teams even more time. In fact, in a 2024 survey, HubSpot determined that 78% of sales professionals said that AI automation helped save time, allowing them to focus on more critical, revenue-driving work.Refining pipeline stages to reflect how deals actually movePipeline refinement means building a custom pipeline with stages that align with your actual sales process, instead of adapting your process to your CRM’s default pipeline stages. The standard pipeline stages present when you first open your CRM typically use generic names to appeal to a broad range of businesses. But these may not necessarily reflect the core pipeline decision points for your specific industry or business type.For a clear pipeline view and smoother sales process, it’s essential for teams to determine the key stages leads move through for each sales process and adapt their sales pipelines accordingly. Setting up a custom build like this also makes it easier for sales managers to identify roadblocks and coach team members more effectively.How do you turn saved training time into a more CRM-fluent team?Just because user-friendly CRMs allow teams to pick up the basics quickly and save training time, it doesn’t mean you should skip training altogether. Planning for continuous CRM fluency development is an opportunity to make your team super users.A CRM-fluent team is a group of employees who understand CRM software to the point that they’re able to use it strategically to enhance processes and reach business goals. Teams that achieve CRM fluency do so through continuous learning following three crucial steps. Nutshell 1. AuditEstablishing the current lay of the land is an important first step. Run a CRM audit to evaluate how your team uses the software and determine which advanced features are underused but useful to your process. This provides you with a good starting point to start building your skills development plan.2. PrioritizeAvoid forcing your team to learn a long list of new features at once. Prioritize those that are most beneficial to your team’s productivity and effectiveness, and then pick one to focus on at a time.Depending on your team and business, you could choose to focus on one new feature per month or per quarter. Reporting, follow-up sequences, and pipeline automations are typically the first port of call for sales teams.3. MeasureA 2024 study by Gallup found that companies actively investing in employee development have reported 11% more profitability. And research conducted by TalentLMS in 2026 shows that 95% of HR managers surveyed feel that more deliberate training and skill development lead to better employee retention.The point being that using this additional time for strategic CRM user training is worth the effort, and you can measure the results through employee retention, team productivity, sales revenue, profitability, and related tangible business outcomes.The real ROI of easy CRM software is what comes nextBefore, the search for user-friendly CRM software was about quick implementation and onboarding. Today, businesses are realizing that with the right easy-to-use system, the benefits extend far beyond that initial stage.The real advantage is the amount of time saved on basic training and how high-growth companies are reinvesting that time into their teams, helping them develop additional skills that make them even more effective at what they do. Over time, this translates to CRM reporting, automation, and pipeline management mastery and a meaningful competitive edge.Teams that achieve CRM fluency move from logging data to building a smarter, more data-driven business. Your success comes down to what you decide to build with the additional time you’ve received.This story was produced by Nutshell and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	How the $40,000 SALT expansion creates high-tax winners and income traps When federal lawmakers enacted the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA)—officially titled H.R.1 in the 119th Congress—they reshaped American homeownership tax policy. By raising the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap from its longstanding $10,000 ceiling to $40,000 in 2025, and increasing it to $40,400 for tax year 2026, Congress delivered a massive, albeit temporary, tax policy shift.However, as Ownwell explains below, a closer look at the Internal Revenue Code shows this $40,000 expansion is far from a universal windfall.Beneath the headline cap lies a complex web of regional disparities, aggressive phase-down mechanisms for high earners, and structural advantages that favor real estate investors over primary homeowners.The Geographical Windfall: High-Tax Municipalities vs. Modest Tax RegionsThe impact of the expanded SALT cap depends heavily on geographic location. Prior to the passage of H.R.1, millions of homeowners in high-cost, high property tax states, such as New Jersey, New York, California, and Illinois, were writing off only a fraction of their actual tax payments due to the strict $10,000 limit established by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Tax Foundation, median annual property tax bills in counties like Essex County, NJ ($13,000-plus), Westchester County, NY ($14,000-plus), and Lake County, IL ($10,000-plus) routinely eclipsed the former cap on real estate taxes alone, before even accounting for state income taxes.High-Tax Metro Areas: For a married couple in Bergen County, NJ, paying $18,000 in local property taxes and $15,000 in state income taxes ($33,000 combined SALT), the original TCJA cap left $23,000 of paid taxes completely undeductible on Schedule A (Form 1040).Under the updated $40,400 cap for 2026, the entire $33,000 bill can now be deducted, delivering thousands of dollars in net federal tax relief.Modest Property Tax Regions: Conversely, in states like Alabama, West Virginia, or Arkansas, where median annual property tax bills range from $700 to $1,200, the quadrupled cap changes very little.For most homeowners in these regions, the standard deduction ($16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for joint filers in 2026) remains far more advantageous than itemizing on Schedule A.The $500,000 Income Trap: How the MAGI Phase-Down OperatesWhile upper-middle-class households in high-tax suburbs represent the primary beneficiaries of the $40,000 cap, high-net-worth individuals face a policy barrier: the Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) phase-down.Under IRS guidelines established by OBBBA, the expanded SALT cap begins to roll back once a household's MAGI surpasses $500,000 ($505,000 for tax year 2026 and half these amounts for married filing separately).How the Phase-Down Math WorksReduction Rate: For every $1.00 of MAGI above the $505,000 threshold (in 2026), the allowable SALT deduction shrinks by $0.30.The Floor: The deduction cannot fall below a $10,000 floor ($5,000 for married filing separately).The High-Earner Limit: By the time a joint-filing household reaches approximately $606,333 in MAGI in 2026, their allowable SALT deduction drops back down to the old $10,000 limit. Ownwell This phase-down raises the effective marginal tax rate for high earners in high-tax jurisdictions, gradually reducing the available deduction for households with incomes between $500,000 and $606,333 across the 2025-2026 tax years.Primary Residences vs. Real Estate Investors: The Schedule E AdvantageA critical distinction in federal tax law lies between personal real estate and investment property. While primary residences and non-rental vacation homes are constrained by Schedule A limits and the SALT cap, rental and commercial properties operate under entirely different rules.According to Internal Revenue Code guidelines, property taxes paid on rental properties rented for more than 14 days per year are classified as ordinary business expenses on Schedule E (Form 1040).100% Deductibility: Property taxes deducted on Schedule E are not subject to the $40,000 SALT cap, nor are they subject to the $500,000 MAGI phase-down.Pass-Through Entity (PTE) Workarounds: Additionally, business owners and real estate investors utilizing S-corporations or partnerships can leverage state-level Pass-Through Entity Tax elections.Over 35 states have enacted PTE legislation that lets business owners pay state income taxes at the entity level, bypassing personal SALT caps on business income and freeing up individual deduction space for personal property taxes.The 2030 Expiration Clock and the Role of Assessment AppealsA crucial detail property owners often miss is that the $40,000 SALT cap is temporary. Under H.R.1 provisions, the cap increases by 1% annually through 2029, then automatically reverts to $10,000 in tax year 2030 unless Congress extends it.Because tax write-offs only mitigate a fraction of out-of-pocket costs based on a filer’s marginal bracket, housing policy experts emphasize that relying solely on federal tax deductions is an incomplete financial strategy.Recent industry analysis from Ownwell indicates that roughly 64% of homeowners experience "sticker shock" when they receive their local property assessment notices. Ownwell Reducing a property's assessed value at the county level offers direct, permanent tax reduction before federal deduction caps ever enter the equation.Strategic Considerations for the 2025-2026 Tax YearsFor homeowners evaluating their tax strategy over the current 2025-2026 filing windows, financial advisors recommend three key steps:1. Run the Itemization Threshold: Compare total itemizable expenses (mortgage interest under the $750,000 debt limit, charitable contributions, and eligible SALT up to $40,400) against the standard deduction ($16,100 single / $32,200 married filing jointly).2. Review Assessment Accuracy: Conduct a thorough audit of your local county assessment records to identify potential inaccuracies or inflated valuations. Because property taxes are calculated based on these assessments, successfully challenging an inaccurate valuation provides guaranteed savings that exist independently of federal tax deduction caps.3. Mind the Escrow Payment Timing: Property tax deductions are recognized in the tax year your mortgage servicing company remits payment to the local tax authority, not when your monthly escrow payments are deposited into your lender's account.This story was produced by Ownwell and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Rockridge High School evacuated after gas line hit Rockridge High School and Junior High were evacuated Thursday morning after a gas line was hit, the district said.
	Get your copy of the fall 2026 garage sale map! Get your copy of the fall 2026 garage sale map!
	Morrison gives update on U.S. 30 reconstruction project The City of Morrison provided an update on the U.S. 30 reconstruction project this week.
	5 reasons why auto repair shops should invest in digital marketing Build it, and they will come doesn’t always hold true for businesses, especially small businesses like auto repair shops. You can hire the best techs, purchase the best equipment money can buy, keep your repair shop clean and organized, and still, when it comes to getting those customers in the door? Crickets. Why? Because no one knows about you and your shop, which is why auto repair shops absolutely have to invest in marketing.For a small or midsize shop, auto repair marketing doesn’t always have to mean spending thousands of dollars on advertisements. All you need is to be visible or memorable when someone has car trouble and is searching for a place to fix it. Your shop must also be easy to find when their car breaks down, and they pull out their phones and type “auto repair near me” on their preferred search platform.Way.com compiled five reasons why auto repair shops should invest in digital marketing.Local listings help drivers find your shopIt’s Tuesday morning, and Arthur’s car wouldn’t start when he wanted to get to work. Now he’s out there in his driveway googling auto repair shops near him. First up on Google’s search results is Acme, not you, and you’re an easy 2 miles closer. Guess which one he calls up?If your shop doesn’t show up in search results, or your Google listing has the wrong number or barely any information on what services you actually provide, you’ve lost a customer, just like that. Meanwhile, the shop down the street just snapped them up.SOCi’s 2024 Consumer Behavior Index found that 47% of consumers will leave a business immediately if they find inaccurate listing information, and even worse, they’ll choose to go to a competitor instead.Your shop may be the best in town, but the internet has no way of knowing that if it cannot find you. Getting your shop listed correctly across search platforms such as Bing, Google, and other places people search is one of the simplest parts of auto repair marketing, and yet it’s the one that most business owners tend to overlook. It also costs next to nothing.Online reviews help build trustLet’s say you’ve got your shop listed, and Arthur does find you. He’s going through the few repair shops that Google helpfully pulled up for him. What does he look at next? He’s looking at the ratings and customer reviews. The shop down the street has 15 reviews, the latest one from just six days ago. Your shop on the other side has 2 reviews, and the last one was from seven months ago. Now Arthur is wondering whether you’re still even in business.Auto repair is a business that runs on trust. Most people don’t really know what’s gone wrong with their car or how much a repair should cost. They don’t even know whether the person telling them they need a new alternator actually has their best interests at heart. They are trusting that you will do a good job and charge them honestly.A recent Consumer Affairs survey shows that 78% of drivers don’t always trust their mechanic, and only 17% feel like they’re charged fairly. Meanwhile, 83% of drivers always consult someone else to double-check a mechanic’s recommendation.Reviews give potential customers an idea of what they can expect before they call you. That’s why 77% of Americans say that online reviews are important before they buy something, while a third of them won’t buy anything without reading reviews. In fact, 80% of them have stayed away from a business after reading bad reviews.The best thing about reviews is that you don’t need a huge budget to build a good reputation online. All you need are happy customers and a way to ask them for reviews. Some shop management systems have this feature built in. Over time, these reviews will help you build a solid reputation and become one of your biggest marketing assets.Your website helps people bookNow that Arthur has found you on Google and checked out your reviews, he wants to know a little bit more before he calls you, so he looks for a website link. If you have one, this is where you get to let him know about your shop. How many years have you been in business? What kind of vehicles do you work on? Do you have a team of techs, or is it just a single-person operation? Do you offer any additional benefits or services? This is where you get to tell your potential customers all of that.A recent DreamHost survey found that 72% of people aged 18 to 24 say having a website is essential for credibility. The survey also found that 60% of consumers say an outdated-looking website might make them trust a business less and doubt its quality.If they click through to a website that looks like it was untouched since 2018 or tells them nothing besides your phone number, they may not feel like you’re the right shop for them. You don’t need a high-tech website with all sorts of bells and whistles, just one that looks professional and gives potential customers the information they need before they decide to go with you … or not.Marketing can help during slow seasonsYou keep getting a few new customers here and there, but that’s not what will help keep your bays full. You need people finding your shop every week, and all year round. You never really know when business might slow down. You could have a packed shop one week, with customers waiting for appointments and your service advisors and techs working overtime, but your bays could be close to empty the next week. Maybe a new repair shop opened up, and they’re offering steep inaugural discounts. It could also be seasonal, or it’s just a coincidence that none of your best customers need repairs that week.A 2025 study of independent auto repair shops found that auto shop revenue dropped by 32% during slow seasons. This is when you need to stay most visible. The industry knows marketing can help with this, which is why repair shops are increasingly shifting their focus to digital marketing, with 12.3% of small shops, 27.7% of medium shops, and 32.6% of large shops reporting that they were doing so.Whatever the reason might be, passively waiting for cars to show up will not help your business grow. Auto repair marketing will help you stay in your customers’ minds even when they don’t need a repair. It will also put your shop in front of potential customers who don’t know much about your shop. When you’re consistently visible, you increase the odds of keeping that steady flow of customers coming through your door.You can level the playing fieldThat shop down the street that’s part of a big chain probably has a pretty huge marketing budget, fancier signboards, and a nicer building. They probably even have teams working on the website and making sure they rank well on search platforms. You’re running one shop with five bays, and you’re not going to beat them by outspending them. The good thing is that you don’t have to because they don’t know your customers the way you do. You know the cars they drive, which services they tend to put off, their budget constraints, and more. This is your big advantage, but it doesn’t help if potential customers don’t know about it.That’s where you need auto repair marketing. You can use your website, social media, email, and other marketing channels to talk about the things your customers care about. Share seasonal maintenance tips or use these channels to answer questions your customers routinely ask. This gives you more to talk about instead of putting a generic ‘we fix cars’ message in front of everyone. This makes you the local authority on auto repair. You already know your community; marketing gives you a way for them to know what you do.The Connected Commerce Council (3C) found that small and medium-sized businesses are using digital tools to deal with economic uncertainties and take on larger companies. Of those using digital advertising, 75% say it helps them compete more fairly with bigger businesses.Try these auto repair marketing strategies, and the next time Arthur’s car breaks down, yours will be the shop he remembers and comes back to.This story was produced by Way.com and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Startup and small business trends across the US in 2026 In an ever-changing world, more Americans are opting out of the challenging job market and transitioning into the driver’s seat in their careers. Many have chosen to control their success by being their own boss, and an increasing number filed business applications in 2026, as Thimble outlines below.According to the United States Census, business applications for July 2026, adjusted for seasonal variation, totaled 578,926, an 8.1% increase over June 2026. The Census Bureau is projects that nearly 30,000 new business startups with payroll tax liabilities will form within four quarters of application from all the business applications filed during July 2026. This large influx could be attributed to factors like technological advancements or economic climates. According to Forbes, it has been coined ”The Great American Small Business Surge.” Additionally, QuickBooks’ 2026 Entrepreneurship Trends report states that entrepreneurship is the top wealth-building strategy for 2026.Most popular startups and business ideas of 2026 in the USThe U.S. Chamber of Commerce outlines several popular startups and businesses in 2026, including those in the health and wellness sector, AI and automation, and even skilled trades and labor. An increase in access to technology and technology’s rapid improvement has created a rise in what QuickBooks calls the “invisible entrepreneur.” According to QuickBooks’ 2026 Entrepreneurship Trends report, these “invisible” entrepreneurs are often unaccounted for: Nearly half (47%) of Americans say they earned income from a side hustle in the past year, but only 20% of them registered their work as a business.What are some examples of popular businesses in 2026?Overall, side hustles and startups are succeeding in several sectors. Here are some of the most popular business types of 2026:Health and Wellness:The anti-aging, nutrition, and overall wellness categories have been a consistent trend of the 2020s and have become a trillion-dollar industry. New wellness research and improvements have made way for renewed success for many businesses, while social media promotes the latest trends. Some examples of startups and businesses include:Med spasSkin care servicesEstheticiansPilates and fitness instructorsSkilled Trades:Due to a massive retirement wave, along with what has been referred to as a “talent gap,” there has been a large increase in demand for skilled trade workers. Due to the rise of AI, skilled trades are seen as one of the few professions that still offer job security. Forbes cites this as the new “plan A” for the younger generations, with a big draw being the ability to start their own business. “With 77% of Gen Z saying they want to become business owners, they’re the most entrepreneurial-minded generation to date—and they can see the clear path from skills to business ownership in the trades,” Mark C. Perna writes in Forbes. “Another 34% believe the trades are the fastest path to getting ahead financially, ahead of 27% who believe this is true of college.”Some examples of startups and business ideas in this space include:Electrical workHandypersonHVACPlumbingRoofingAI and Automation:AI has led the way for a new wave of entrepreneurs in this digital age. While many startups are running their own AI model, others are utilizing AI to corner the market in other areas. AI has become a tool to streamline daily tasks and create content more efficiently than ever. From new marketing ideas, fashion designs, drop-shipping businesses, and even warehousing and logistics ventures, the examples of startups and businesses growing in this category include:E-commerceContent creationMarketing and brand consultingWarehousing and logisticsKey tasks for new startups to succeed in 2026Americans should expect new startup trends across the U.S. to continue to evolve over time due to a variety of factors. But the key tasks for startups to launch successfully change much less frequently.Consider the following:Identify your business’s mission at the start to stay on track. You can reference the SBA for planning resources.Set goals, both long-term (quarterly, yearly) and short-term, to keep things moving in your pipeline.Create contact information for your business, including a business email address and phone number.Establish an EIN.Open a bank account for your business.Create a website and/or social media accounts to build your online presence.Consider getting commercial business insurance.This story was produced by Thimble and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Apples, German beer, and pickles: Here's Dani's Weekend Rundown for Sept. 17-23 There's a lot happening around the Quad Cities this weekend. Whether you take the family or make it a date night, here's what you shouldn't miss.
	Rockridge Junior High and High School evacuated after gas line hit Rockridge Junior High and High School was evacuated on Thursday morning after a gas line was hit.

Friday, September 18th, 2026

Thursday, September 17th, 2026