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Fairfield Ledger Mt. Pleasant News Washington Evening JournalClassifieds Jobs Real Estate Buy PhotosPublic Notices Weather Account Subscribe E-edition Home News Sports Lifestyles Opinion Obituaries Special Sections Search Account SubscribeSubscribe E-edition Search Home News Sports Lifestyles Opinion Obituaries Special Sections Classifieds Jobs Real Estate Public Notices Weather Fairfield Ledger Mt. Pleasant News Top Stories Henry County GOP chairman resigns after Facebook post for ... Friday, January 08, 2021 By Caitlin Yamada, The Union NewsMT. PLEASANT - Trent Hobbs, who posted on the Henry County Republican Party Facebook page stating patriots should prepare for a revolution and ’stay locked and loaded,’ has resigned from his position ...Vaccines ’bittersweet’ after 5 COVID deathsFriday, January 08, 2021 By Brooklyn Draisey, The Union NewsKEOTA — For residents and staff at the Keota Health Care Center, the COVID-19 vaccine came around a month too late. The chronic care and dementia center reported a COVID-19 outbreak the day before Thanksgiving, with 31 out of 33 residents and 17 staff members testing positive. Five residents died. Administrator David Barrientos said it was bittersweet to have the vaccine now as the center recovers from the outbreak. The center partnered with CVS to receive the Pfizer vaccine, and has vaccinated around 95 percent of its residents and is working on vaccinating staff. Workers will return to administer a second dose and vaccinate other staff on Jan. 20, and come back a final time three weeks later. “We were so close to the vaccine you know ... we wish it could have happened sooner, wish we could have stayed COVID free, but that’s just how it happened,” Barrientos said. Cathi Coley, a nurse at the center, tested positive during the outbreak. Since she had minor symptoms, Coley worked with the residents who tested positive, along with Barrientos. She experienced minor symptoms, such as slight exhaustion, but it didn’t keep from her job. She said it was hard to watch residents, who she had gotten to know over her year of working at the center, decline in health. “I wouldn’t wish it on anybody,” she said. When deciding whether to receive the vaccine, Coley said she thought about the long history of vaccines helping people and her fears of bringing COVID-19 back to her family, especially her daughter, who has an immune deficiency. Her wish to keep her family healthy outweighed any risks she saw in receiving the vaccine, she said. Coley didn’t experience any pain from the vaccine site, but did have a mild fever the same day. Deb Myers, a laundry aid at the center, was worried about the newness of the vaccine, how quickly it was created then offered to the public. In the end, it was her age that made her decide to receive the vaccine. At 64 years old, she thought it was best to get it now. She experienced no pain or other symptoms after receiving the vaccine. “I always thought maybe I probably would want to get it, but I didn’t want to be one of the first ones,” Myers said. Doctors were available to answer questions she had about the vaccine, Coley said, and she also utilized a video put out by the Iowa Health Care Association. Barrientos said many on staff were hesitant to get the vaccine, but documentation was available for those who had questions. The vaccine is available to all residents and staff who meet the criteria on the immunization questionnaire. With those in and working at the center recovering from the outbreak and taking steps to prevent getting COVID-19, Coley said the atmosphere has been lighter. Things aren’t back to normal and visitations are still restricted, but it’s getting better. “The tension is off, things are less stressful,” Myers said.KEOTA - For residents and staff at the Keota Health Care Center, the COVID-19 vaccine came around a ...Stewart, Dickey picked to face off in Senate District 41 Friday, January 08, 2021 Andy Hallman NewsThe political parties have selected their candidates for the special election in Iowa’s Senate District 41. During party conventions held Thursday night, the Democratic Party selected Mary Stewart of Ottumwa as its nominee, and the Republican Party selected Adrian Dickey of rural Packwood. Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks vacated the seat after she was elected to Congress. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced a special election for Jan. 26 to fill the seat. District 41 includes all of Van Buren and Davis counties, plus most of Wapello and Jefferson counties, including the cities of Ottumwa and Fairfield. The Republicans held their convention in Ottumwa, while the Democrats held theirs virtually. Those who were allowed to vote on the nomination were the members of each party’s central committee chosen during the 2020 caucuses. Dickey, president of Dickey Transport in Packwood, said the Republican Party reached out to him after Miller-Meeks’s victory to see if he would be interested in filling her seat. Dickey said he was honored to be asked, and felt he could contribute something in the Iowa Senate. “Our party has done so much to conserve the values and principles we stand for the last couple of years,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting out, learning the district and learning everyone’s thoughts and desires on how I can help in the next 18 days.” Stewart worked at Indian Hills Community College for 33 years in the college’s employment and training sectors and as the dean of academic services. After learning of her nomination Thursday night, Stewart said she is grateful for the support she received. “I plan to work hard to bring positive leadership to this district and this state,” she said. “And I will work every day to create opportunities for rural Iowa to thrive.”The political parties have selected their candidates for the special election in Iowa’s Senate ...Washington For Justice sets speaker on raceFriday, January 08, 2021 By Caitlin Yamada, The Union NewsWASHINGTON — Washington for Justice is hosting a guest speaker this weekend to discuss race, implicit bias and discrimination. Professor Yolanda Spears is the speaker. She is a licensed master’s level social worker. She has a master’s degree from the University of Iowa School of Social Work. Washington for Justice Director Meredith Henderson said Spears teaches a course at Iowa about discrimination, oppression and diversity. “She has years of experience working with diverse populations, creating community partnerships and program development,” according to a news release. Henderson said she attended one of Spears’ presentations in 2019 and was thrilled they were able to coordinate the meeting. The event is taking place virtually at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 10. A link to the Zoom meeting can be found on the Facebook page Washington For Justice. Henderson said having talks such as this one is important in light of the recent events, including the riots at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. “Race issues are in the limelight right now as they should be,” Henderson said. She said it is good to have these conversations, even in small-town Iowa. “We have misinformation and racist people,” Henderson said. ”We need to work on ourselves and education is a great way to do that.”WASHINGTON - Washington for Justice is hosting a guest speaker this weekend to discuss race, ...Hospital special election date setFriday, January 08, 2021 By James Jennings, The Union NewsHenry County voters will be asked to go back to the polls on March 2. Auditor Shelly Barber told the Board of Supervisors Thursday morning that there is a special election scheduled for...